Fates Unravelled
by SophieVF
Summary: It was then that he caught sight of the pin on her robes, and he sneered at it tauntingly, "What's the matter Granger? Worried that if you didn't keep your initials on your robes you'd forget who you were? I didn't realise you were so dimwitted." "It's not meant to be my initials you insufferable prat, I'm Head Girl."
1. Chapter 1

She pushed her hair off of her damp face, glaring slightly at the hustle and bustle of the students around her. Each eager face was beaming happily at their peers, glad to be back for what may finally be a safe and average year of school. As average as possible for Hogwarts that is.

Hermione sighed audibly, attracting the attention of her close friend Harry Potter, whose gaze had been fixated on his beautiful girlfriend for the entirety of the train ride. He patted her shoulder reassuringly, guessing her thoughts. The war had affected each person differently, some dealing with more drastic consequences than others. Ron for example, had suffered over the loss of his brother Fred, and was handling it worse than others. Hermione had watch his transformation before her very eyes, sadly seeing the way he turned cold and negative towards her and the rest of the world. She refused to give up though. They'd been so close to happiness before his brother's death, so close to the relationship she'd been longing for for years, and Hermione was nothing if not stubborn.

"Hermione there's a free carriage up the front, quickly, let's get out of this sodding rain." Harry dragged her from her thoughts, pushing her through the crowd of students towards a carriage being led by what she realised in horror must be the thestrals that Harry had described to her. Her face darkened as she looked around at the shock and sadness displayed on each students face as they too realised they were able to see the winged creatures, their memories spiralling back to that fateful night where bodies of their friends and families were hitting the ground mercilessly. Hermione shuddered and climbed into the carriage ungracefully, pausing again to push her dripping wet hair from her face.

"I almost don't want to go back," she whispered tiredly. "My memories of this castle have been tainted. All I'll be able to think of is Lavender, Tonks, Remus…Fred, Dumbledore for Godric's sake, all those people." Ginny patted her shoulder tentatively as if worried she'd burst into tears herself. "They're just… gone."

Ron grunted sullenly from beside her, and Hermione reached her hand towards his. His reflex's were too quick however, and he pushed his hands deep into his robes pockets, turning away from her moodily, leaving the air in the carriage heavier than it had been previously. Harry exchanged a quick look with Ginny, but Hermione ignored it, acting as if she'd not noticed the clear act of rejection from her boyfriend.

The carriages pulled up at the castle gates and Hermione left her friends standing at the entrance, as she herded a group of students towards the Great Hall. Her reminiscing had not made her forget about the small badge pinned to the front of her robes, shining brightly in the light cascading down from the hanging lanterns. A large, golden "HG" was pinned proudly, and she was not going to waste her time fretting over the past when she had important duties to attend to. Her escorting of the students was quick, her eyes searching desperately for help, though none came, and soon she was seating herself beside Ron, Harry and Ginny at the Gryffindor table, listening to the sorting hat sing tales of the passing war, and the unity which would follow.

"Load of bollocks if you ask me," grunted Ron sourly, "If anything this war has just shown how weak and diabolical those Slytherins really are. I still reckon McGonagall is off her rocker letting them back here." His knuckles whitened as he clenched his fists, broodingly staring at the sea of green and silver student on the opposite end of the hall. Hermione clenched her teeth, trying to prevent the argument from breaking out so early into the school year, but Ginny beat her to it.

"Ron some of them stayed. Some of them fought with us. Not all of them left, and even if they did can you blame them? Not everyone has a death wish. Most of their parents were on You-Know-Who's side, it's not like they would want to fight their parents."

"Ginny, he's gone, I think you can say Voldemort's nam-" Harry tried to correct her but Ron ferociously interrupted.

"I don't see why you're sticking up for them Gin, they've been nothing but prats to everyone since they stepped foot in the school, and one bloody war won't change that. They ran to save their own skins. To join His side against us. They would gladly have us dead."

Hermione cleared her throat nervously, not wanting to draw attention to herself, but hoping the three Gryffindors would stop their fighting for a moment to realise the headmistress was about to speak. "Good evening students," Minerva McGonagall stood above them at the podium, looking as strict, and as neat as ever. Her hair had gone a shade more grey, and her face was lined with more wrinkles, clear impacts from the passing war, though she held herself proudly.

Hermione stared at her, feeling respect bloom within her chest at the sight of this fierce woman in front of her. "I'd like to welcome you back to a new year at Hogwarts. For those of you who are new, there are some rules which you must abide by. Firstly it is asked that you are not to go into the Forbidden Forest. It would be assumed that that would be common knowledge, considering the name, but some of you," she stared towards their place at the table, and Harry blushed and ducked his head down, "seem to need reminding each year, so I thought I would let you know. Also, due to the events in the recent past, we will be trying our hardest this year to integrate each of the houses, so I would like to remind each and every one of you that this school was founded on friendship, and although we are individuals, we are all together on this journey to wisdom. Any foolish fights or inappropriate behaviour towards others will not be tolerated, and we are treating this very seriously this year."

Hermione took a side glance at Ron, who was shifting between glaring daggers at his sister, and at the Slytherins, and she rubbed her temples, praying she would have the power to stop him from doing anything stupid this year. "And with that, I think it is time for the well awaited feast. Bon Appetite." McGonagall drew away from the podium with a swish of her robes as food littered the previously empty tables. Hermione watched her boyfriend's eyes light up, for the first time in what felt like years, at the sight of the gigantic feast.


	2. Chapter 2

She stood from the table a while later, feeling satisfied and tired, knowing she still needed to meet with McGonagall to determine the whereabouts of her sleeping arrangements. "I'll see you guys tomorrow, have a good one." With a feeble wave she walked away from them, noticing they barely paid her leaving any attention, and recognising that despite the difference circumstances, that this school year may not be as different from the others as she thought.

She walked absentmindedly through the newly rebuilt stone corridors, ignoring the dull ache it caused in her chest to stare too long at the rubble still littering the floor in areas. She closed her eyes for a brief moment and took in a deep breath, ignoring the muted screams she could hear, and the violent visions dancing across her eyelids. The dreams had been plaguing her for weeks, slowly at first, and then all at once. She could not sleep…she could not think… without remembering.

Hermione was brought back to reality by her chest crashing into something solid. She rebounded backwards, arms flailing. A moment before her impact with the ground however, something reached out and grabbed her arm, yanking her back into a standing position. She breathed a sigh of relief before turning her vision towards the person. "I'm so sorr- ….oh. It's you."

Her jaw clenched tightly as she stared a the man before her. Gone were his school boy looks, replaced by a pointed, sculpted face, pale in the light of the hallway. His body had grown since she'd last seen him a year ago in the room of requirement. He was tall, far taller than her, reaching roughly Ron's height. His handsome face and tall stature did not intimidate her however. She squared her shoulders and braced herself for his rude retorts, glaring daggers into his dull, grey eyes.

"Granger," he drawled, "Falling for me already? Bit early in the school term don't you think…?"

"Shove off Malfoy," she spat back angrily

"I could say the same to you. Watch where you're walking Mud-…" He stopped and swallowed, eyes darting around in frustration, before lowering his voice, "I'll have to wash the filth off my robes now."

"Go cry about it to Daddy, Malfoy," Hermione responded, equally as quiet, and smiled in victory as she saw his eyes darken considerably. "Move out of my way, I'm late."

"I didn't hear a please Granger. Didn't your muggle parents ever teach you any manners?"

She growled and shoved him aside, but her caught her arm and yanked her, far more forcefully than before. It was then that he caught sight of the pin on her robes, and he sneered at it tauntingly, "What's the matter Granger? Worried that if you didn't keep your initials on your robes you'd forget who you were? I didn't realise you were so dimwitted."

"It's not meant to be my initials you insufferable prat, I'm Head Girl." He dropped her arm in shock, as if remembering she was vermin to him, and she took the opportunity to storm away.

She reached the gargoyles, and whispered "Ragdoll," climbing the emerging staircase quickly, aware of her late arrival. The door opened with a crash, and she quickly bid her apologies, but Mcgonagall waved them away nonchalantly.

"Ms Granger, I was beginning to wonder whether either of my Heads would be turning up tonight." Hermione's eyes cast around the room and noticed the empty chairs, feeling somewhat better knowing the Head Boy was not there yet. "Take a seat, I think I hear him coming now."

Hermione sat, and watched in anticipation as the door opened once more to reveal the same blonde haired man she'd been previously arguing with. "Malfoy!?" She asked incredulously, "Are you following me?"

Draco Malfoy looked down on her in disgust, pausing only on his way to the chairs to say, "Get your head out your arse Granger, like I would want to follow you of all people."

Minerva McGonagall cleared her throat sternly glancing at the two students, wondering what she'd been thinking when she'd allowed Dumbledore' portrait to convince her that this was a good idea. "Mr Malfoy, Ms Granger, you two have been chosen to be Head Boy and Head Girl this year." Hermione sprang to her feet in shock, staring at Malfoy's twisted face. "Before you protest, it's too late for you to change anything. So sit back down Ms Granger." Hermione sat, much to Malfoy's amusement.

The headmistress frowned before pointing to a beaming portrait beside the windowsill. "Albus over here seems to think that inter-house unity will stem from placing the two feuding houses together, and this will start with the two of you. Yes Mr Malfoy, you heard me correctly." Malfoy's eyes had widened considerably, making it difficult for Hermione to hold back a snigger. "Now you two can carry on wanting to kill each other in the comfort of your own exclusive common room, but from the moment you step out into the castle corridors, you are to be civil to one another. Do I make myself clear?" The two nodded hesitantly, and she continued on, "now I'll show you to your rooms. Follow me."

The two trudged behind her grudgingly as she led them up to the sixth floor corridor, before halting in front of a portrait of a nymph, combing her hair on a log near a winding stream. She giggled when she saw Malfoy, and his grin widened considerably. Hermione groaned, knowing his ego did not need expanding.

"Water lily."Hermione recorded the password to memory, knowing full well that if she forgot it, Malfoy was sure to keep her locked out for as long as possible. The Nymph winked before sliding off the log into the stream, and with that, the portrait opened to reveal a gorgeous looking common room.

Two beige armchairs and a beige couch surrounded a sandalwood coffee table, cream and blue coloured cushions littering the seats. The floor was hardwood, with a soft white rug beneath the furniture in the centre. The couch faced a blazing fireplace, which lit up the room with a soft yellow lighting. Beautiful landscape paintings hung around the walls, and a grand staircase came up at the back, from the left side of the room leading to a white door with a large golden "HG", and a staircase led up from the right side of the room towards another door with a "HB." A small chandelier of cut glass hung from the ceiling, and the room looked like a beach house mixed with a five star resort. Hermione beamed in excitement as she rushed towards the centre of the room, her eyes transfixed on the over flowing bookcases, and study desks lining the walls, while Draco strutted in, seemingly unimpressed.

"Needless to say, Mr Malfoy and Ms Granger, the same charms apply to these staircases, as they did to the ones in the Slytherin and Gryffindor common rooms, so don't try to break into each others rooms. I'll be going now, but before I do, just a quick reminder that you need to set a prefect meeting for tomorrow to discuss patrols, and that you need to remember to act civilly in public. Do not make me regret your positions. Goodnight." She turned around and walked out of the portrait hole, closing it behind her with a resonating thud.

"Well that keeps the mood light hearted." Malfoy mumbled sarcastically, and Hermione rolled her eyes, already sick of his attitude. She walked up her staircase to investigate her room, which on discovery, reflected the same beach-like colour scheme of whites, cremes and blues as the common room did. Her trunk sat at the foot of her bed, and her beloved cat Crookshanks was lounging on a cat climbing tower in the corner of her room, pawing at a toy that Hermione knew she had not brought herself. This made her wonder just how much these Head Dorms were customised for the yearly owners.

She skipped back down the stairs after exploring the conjoining bathroom between her room and Malfoy's, humming to herself happily, ecstatic at the living quarters she'd inhabit for the next year, before a frustrated "huff" reminded her she was not alone.

"You finished exploring yet? I mean I know your boyfriend can't afford such a nice place, but I thought at least you would not be quite as pathetically excited about this." Hermione's positive mindset shifted nearly instantly at his insult towards Ron.

"Leave him alone Malfoy, he's better than you'll ever be." She hissed sourly in the direction of the armchair he'd claimed.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that Granger." He smirked in satisfaction at her reaction, toying with her like a cat to a mouse, "I wouldn't be too sure." And with that he stood from his perch, and headed up towards his room, leaving her fuming in her chair.


	3. Chapter 3

The week had passed rather stressfully for Hermione. The news of Draco Malfoy being Head Boy had circulated the castle like wildfire, and for some reason unknown to Hermione, Harry and Ron seemed to be angry at her because of it. Ron especially, he'd been sending her glaring looks and retorting with one worded answers whenever she spoke, and frankly Hermione was growing tired of his childishness. It was not her fault Draco Malfoy was Head Boy, she didn't want it to happen! But Ron could not seem to accept the fact that Hermione and Malfoy were living together, within very close proximity of each other, and the very thought of it turned his face a shade of red which rivalled his hair.

The schoolwork and Head Girl duties were taking their toll as well, as her N.E.W.T.S. were the last exams she'd ever take at Hogwarts and she was determined to maintain her grade point average, while still maintaining her role of leadership. A week into the term and she was already stressing, to the point where her friends were becoming nervous just front looking at her.

"Hermione… put the book down, you can't possibly be behind on homework. Even Ron and I aren't struggling yet. You need to relax."

"There's no time to relax Harry…I need to learn the content by monday so I'm prepared."

"But Hermio-"

"Don't bother Harry." Ron replied cooly, "She clearly finds her books more interesting than our company. Don't you Hermione?"

Hermione recoiled as if he'd hit her, and she stared shocked at his accusatory tone. "Ron that's not true at all."

"Oh really?" He jutted his jaw out arrogantly, and stared accusingly at her. "Because we've barely seen you all week, you're too busy in your 'private dorms' with Malfoy, and then even when you're not in there you still aren't around. And now, in one of the only times you've given us to spend with you this week, you aren't even trying to talk to us." The atmosphere was once again tense, and Hermione did not know what was bringing on such animosity between Ron and herself.

"Ron." Harry spoke the word as a warning, but Hermione waved it off.

"You're being very unfair Ron, I've only been busy a week and you're already yelling at me over it? I'm trying to do my job as a Head Girl and that involves twice as many patrols as prefects so you can't get angry at me for not having much time, especially when you're hardly putting in any effort when I am around! All you ever seem to be is angry and upset!"

Ron's eyes flashed angrily and they had the attention of the entire common room now. "Well _sorry_ I'm so angry and upset all the time! I can't help it if my brother died and I'm not too chirpy about it!" He spat sarcastically. Harry dropped his head in shame but Hermione was not backing down.

"We all lost someone Ron." She said softly. "Every single one of us. Harry has lost the most out of everyone and he is not snapping at everyone! His parents, his god father, Remus and Dumbledore all fell for this cause and here he is, moving forward." Her words grew louder as the frustration built within her._ "My parent's don't remember who I am. _I had to wipe their memories to save them, but no matter what, I still end up without them! Ginny is in the same boat as you and yet she is also trying to move on. So you need to stop refusing to try, and get on with your life. This isn't what Fred would want."

The room was silent now. Ron stared at her, mouth agape, and Hermione was tempted to snap it shut to get the stupid look off his face. "Don't you try to tell me what Fred would or wouldn't want." He breathed quietly, and then he exploded. "You think you know everything! Well you don't! Learn to know when to leave things alone!" He stood up and backed away from her, his face bright red from shouting.

"You don't know how hard it is trying to date a girl who has no time for anyone but herself."

His words were like poison, and she stood quickly, shocked and upset. How dare he say such a thing. "Well you know what Ronald?" She spat back ferociously, while Harry sat in a worried silence, "You don't know how hard it is trying to date a boy who's such a whiney, moody, insensitive brat!" She ran out the room and down the corridor, wanting to punch something. "The nerve of that boy." She growled to herself. He'd been nothing but horrible in the past few months and she'd been trying her hardest to be supportive, but if that's what she get's in response he could forget it.

She hissed the password to an offended looking nymph, and stormed into the Head's common room, angrily wiping her misting eyes, clenching her fists to her sides, afraid of breaking something.

"What's got you all ruffled up?" Malfoy drawled as he lounged comfortably across the couch, reading a novel by an unknown author.

"Piss off Malfoy."

"Oooh, fiesty Granger, but you'd better watch how you speak to me. I'm not always so forgiving."

She couldn't deal with him right now. "Leave me alone, please." Begging. She'd reached her low point.

"You should hear how pathetic you sound right now Granger." Malfoy smirked, and looked up at her for the first time since she'd entered the room. His smirk dropped as he saw tears of frustration start to fall down her face, and he almost regretted the insult. _Almost. _"Granger…?"

"Leave me alone." She said, trying as hard as possible to not let him see her like this. They were tears of frustration, but any tears were enough to give him something to tease her about. He stood slowly and walked over to her, and Hermione did not think he knew himself quite what he was going to do or say, but she didn't give him the chance to figure it out. She drew herself up to her tallest height, squared her shoulders and clenched her jaw, trying to look as strong as possible before racing up the staircase into her beautiful room.

Draco Malfoy could not help but think of how small and helpless she seemed.


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione awoke the next morning feeling equally as terrible as before, and was contemplating whether or not it would be worth the effort to go down the The Great Hall for breakfast. Hermione thought about it, but she remembered she had Head duties to sort out with Malfoy during her free period in the morning, and figured if she had to suffer, she wasn't going to do it on an empty stomach. She groaned and rolled off her bed ungracefully, feeling very unsure of her decision.

The Great Hall was overflowing with students this morning, and laughter and chatter was combining into a great big roar of noise. It was enough for Hermione to consider turning around again, but she pushed on. She spotted her friends sitting towards the centre of the table, and she cast her eyes downwards to avoid having to make any contact with them. Just as she was about to sit however, Harry caught sight of her and called her over to them. Hermione winced.

She sat down beside Ron, who seemed to distracted by his eggs to notice her, and caught a glance of pity coming from the power couple in front of her.

"How are you this morning Hermione?" Ginny asked in a slightly higher pitch than usual. It was clear Harry had informed her of the night before.

"I'm totally fine"

Ron looked up and stared at her briefly, and then leaned over. "We need to talk."

"So talk Ronald," she whispered irritably back, ignoring the look exchanged between Ginny and Harry.

"Privately." He grabbed her wrist and lead her from the hall, ignoring her quiet attempt at a protest, he leaned her against a wall a corridor down from the hall, his eyes darting around uncomfortably. "Hermione look-"

Her heart thudded and she prepared for the worst. Which was why his next words came as a great surprise. "I'm sorry."

"You-…what?"

"I'm sorry. You're right… I've been a downright prat to you, and you don't deserve it. I'll try to be better." She flung her arms around him happily, and she pressed her lips to his gently.

"Thank you" Ron kissed her back, and it gave her some hope that maybe they'd go back to how they were before the war. She put her hands on the side of his face, holding him close to her as he kissed her. The moment was perfect. Until…

"Granger."

She pushed Ron off of her faster than she thought possible, her cheeks flaming red from embarrassment at being caught kissing in the hallways. "Malfoy" Her voice sounded breathless, and she cursed herself for getting so excited, but she cursed Malfoy more for interrupting.

"I've been looking for you…But now I can see you were… occupied." He scrunched his nose in disgust and looked down at the couple. "If you're trying to get filthier it's working."

Ron lurched forwards, his fists clenched tightly, but Malfoy shook his finger at him in disapproval. "Ah Ah, not so fast Weasel. Head Boy remember?"

"Shove off prick." Ron hissed, and Malfoy's eyes narrowed.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for disrespecting authority Weasley." Hermione made a noise of protest, and he turned his attention on her. "You coming Granger?" She huffed and squeezed Ron's hand before walking towards the arrogant blonde.

"You can't be serious Hermione. What the hell are you doing going with him?"

"That's for us to know and you to never find out Weasley, now move along, you may want to get your fill in The Great Hall before your parents realise they can't afford to send you here anymore."

Ron snarled, his face turning red and Hermione pushed Malfoy away, towards the staircases, ignoring his protest and sent a final apologetic look to her boyfriend before rushing down the halls to her dorm. The moment she stepped inside the fight broke out. "What was that Malfoy!" She screeched, "You could've just said we had to write the patrol schedule before potions, you didn't have to be such an insufferable prat!"

He shrugged casually, "Slipped my mind."

"Slipped your-…" She stopped, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration, and then sighed in defeat. "I actually want to have a boyfriend by the end of this week, so next time kindly butt out."

"Next time don't choose to get down and dirty in a public place Granger. No one wants to see that."

"I wasn't getting down and dirty you pervert," she sat down in an armchair, not putting much effort into the argument anymore. He didn't seem to be either.

"I forgot, Hermione Granger, the golden girl. You'd never do something so dirty." He smirked and she half wanted to cast the silencing charm just so he would give her some peace, but her title of Head Girl may be threatened if she did that.

"You're an ass."

"And you're a know-it-all" He smirked again, half-heartedly this time, and pulled his quill towards him, "Now can we begin?"


	5. Chapter 5

Hermione arrived in Potions at the beginning of the next hour to start her lessons for the day and was met by silence from her two friends. "Honestly guys it was just head duties, yknow?"

They grunted, but said nothing more. A moment later Malfoy strutted through the double doors with Blaise Zambini and sat behind the trio. She shut her eyes and put her head down, wishing she'd decided to stay in bed that day.

"- that Father's gone, Mother has been far more lenient as well. She even visited muggle London the other day with my aunt Andromeda. It's like she's gone mad."

Hermione's ears perked up and she tuned out Harry and Ron's quidditch conversation in order to pay attention to Malfoy.

"-sn't she disowned? Yeah my family is the same. If we don't act civilly towards the muggles Mum's worried the ministry will come. They've been watching us."

"They don't understand…" Malfoy lowered his voice further as Slughorn waddled into the room, making it difficult to hear. So Malfoy's family had to become muggle friendly to keep the ministry at bay? This was big news, Malfoy must be furious. "-Living with Granger is bad enough, and now this. It's ridiculous. They've locked away all the insane ones anyway."

"Doesn't make a difference mate. It's never ending." Slughorn weaved his fat belly around their desk to check their potions, and gave a disappointed sniff at Hermione's.

"I understand it's early Ms Granger, but please do not let your mind wander. Distractions will make it exceptionally difficult to keep up."

"Sorry Professor" She mumbled, embarrassed at her lack of work ethic due to eavesdropping. She heard Malfoy shush Blaise from behind her, and whisper the word, "later."

He knew she'd heard.

She turned towards Harry and Ron, who'd also put hardly any effort into their potions, and tried to start conversation in order to make it seem like she'd not been listening. "Hogsmeade Weekend is coming up, were we going?"

Harry shuffled awkwardly, and threw a side glance at Ron. "Well… actually Gin and I had plans… but you guys are welcome to join?"

Hermione smiled at Ron, but he shrugged nonchalantly. "If you're not busy with Malfoy."

Her smile grew tense, and she could sense eyes on the back of her head. He'd heard his name. "No Ron, I'm free and I'd love to spend some time with you. So is it okay? Or not?"

"I guess." So much for _I'll try to be better _Hermione thought. It's like all the progress they'd made that morning was for nothing. But she plastered on a fake smile and reached for his hand. She was going to make this work, not matter how immature he was being.

The class ended shortly after, and the day went by quickly. By the end of the day Ron was happy with her again, and treating her as sweetly as she'd been hoping for for months. She breathed happily, sinking down into the couch in her common room, clutching _A Tale of Two Cities _between her hands, ready for a relaxing night alone.

_"__Far and wide lay a ruined country, yielding nothing but desolation. Every green leaf, every blade of grass and blade of grain, was as shrivelled and poor as the miserable people."_

"Nothing but desolation." She whispered sadly. She remembered the blood splattered walls, the screams from the victims of the Cruciatus curse rebounding off the walls. The trolls swinging their clubs wildly… Fenrir Greyback preying on the young students, chewing ferociously on their flesh as if they were sweets.

_And then there was Harry. Harry Potter walking down the stairs. "I'm going there now." A crushing weight on her chest as reality sank in. "There's a reason I can hear them… the Horcruxes. I think I've known for awhile. And I think you have too." And then he was dead. He was _**_dead._**_ In Hagrid's arms, and her heart plummeted. Ron could not comfort her, the pain she felt was indescribable. Blood, blood, blood so much blood. And the stench of death invaded her nostrils, making it hard for her to breathe. So much death, death everywhere, everyone was gone and she screamed out, she could not stop herself._

_"_Granger!"

She sat up, heart beating wildly in her chest, tears streaming down her face. "Harry?!"" No. She wiped the tears, and slumped backwards, realising it had all been a dream. Her heart was slowing, her breathing became paced again as she covered her face in her hands. "Oh god."

"Granger?" She sat up again in a mixture of shock and embarrassment.

"Malfoy. Oh." Hermione put her head down, subtly trying to dry her face, but she knew the damage was done. "What do you want."

Draco hesitated, and stared down at the young muggleborn sitting hunched on the couch, feeling as if an insult would not be the wisest to throw at her in that moment. He wasn't prepared for this type of situation, and was itching to walk up the stairs behind her and leave her alone, completely uninterested in getting involved… but he could hear his mother whispering about etiquette and manners as if she were standing right behind him, and he internally groaned before awkwardly saying the words, "Are you alright?"

He almost wished he'd been able to record her reaction, because flinching out of shock was not what he was expecting. Hermione didn't know what to say. "Bad dream."

"Oh." There was a tense silence held between the two of them before Malfoy mentally berated himself for being nice to her. "I see Weasley can't handle the fact that you enjoy spending free time with me."

"Enjoy is not the term I would use Malfoy," she sighed. "And eavesdropping isn't very polite."

"I could say the same to you Granger." She had the decency to look embarrassed at least. "My conversations are not meant for your ears, so if you stay out of my life, I will stay out of yours."

"I wasn't trying to-"

"-It's fine." He shut her down quickly. He began the walk up his staircase when her feeble voice made him stop in his tracks.

"Are they threatening you?" He turned back around slowly, staring at her questioningly. "The ministry."

"Watch yourself Granger." Malfoy's tone darkened considerably, "Don't meddle around in things you can't handle."

"I think I can handle more than you'd expect Malfoy. You should know that, after everything I've been through."

_Screams, the flash of metal against her flesh, the smell of blood reached her ears. Mudblood. "In case you forget, you little bitch." The crazy eyes gleaming with malice towards her, a flash of blonde staring from the corner. His grey eyes wide with horror. She tried to stare at him. "Help me," she mouthed, but a foot came swinging towards her stomach and the next moment…"CRUCIO" …she was writhing in pain._ _Help me, please god someone._

Malfoy's eyes closed and his jaw clenched and Hermione could tell that he was recalling the same memory. "It's nothing Granger. Protocol. We didn't expect them to just let us go, they'd be bollocks if that happened."

"What do you mean Malfoy…" He clenched his hands tight around the bannister of the stairs, and sighed.

"Why can't you just keep your damn nose out of other people's business." She stood slowly, and he watched her walk gracefully towards him, her hair falling out of the knot she'd tied, and her make up run slightly beneath her eyes. He was not used to seeing a girl look so unkempt. He felt his frustration dissolve slightly, staring at her unruly hair and messy face."They think we are going to rise again."

His shoulders slumped slightly, but before Hermione could respond, he was up the stairs and in his room.


	6. Chapter 6

Hermione sat curled up on Ron's lap in the Gryffindor common room late on Friday night. She hummed happily, eyelids fluttering close from a mixture of comfort and exhaustion while Ron stroked her bushy mane with his right hand, the left clutching her waist securely. She felt safe and happy right here, and was not going to move.

She listened to Harry and Ginny argue over the moves they'd be using against the Slytherins in the quidditch match the next day, and zoned in and out of the conversation without much protest, thinking idly of the odd conversation she'd had with Malfoy a few days prior. _They think we are going to rise again_. Well it made some sense to her if she was being honest, but without their leader the Death Eaters were nothing. The ministry had controlled them after the last war without extreme measures, and she was sure they could do it again. Though it was common knowledge that if the ministry really was doing something forceful, the public would be the last to find out.

She hadn't really seen him since that conversation. It struck her as odd how he'd actually admitted to so much without her really needing to provoke it, but Hermione chose not to dwell on that, rather, she was focusing more on the weight of his words.

She wondered if she should tell Harry and Ron, though she was very aware that mentioning she'd spoken almost civilly to Malfoy would ignite a small flame in the fuse box of the boys, and she was not interested in having another fight over a minor matter. That's why Hermione decided this would stay a little secret between her and Malfoy for the moment…it was easier that way.

She tried to reason that nothing much could be done by her anyway, but she mentally berated herself when she realised that change could come from anyone or anything. It was like the butterfly effect. Voldemort was one man and he changed a lifetime, Harry Potter was one man and he saved the wizarding world. One person could do anything.

Why she was so concerned about it however, well she wasn't too sure. Hermione assumed it had something to do with seeing how Malfoy's shoulders slumped before he left her sitting alone in the common room. She wasn't used to seeing his facade break, and that indicated to her that there was far more to the story than he was telling, and she was too thirsty for this knowledge to leave it alone.

Ron shifted forward to point to a strategy from their playbook, clutching Hermione closer towards him to prevent her from falling. A sharp intake of breath from the surprise at the movement let the other three know she was still awake. Hermione inhaled again, a strange look came upon her face.

"Ron you smell different."

He blushed in embarrassment and stuttered slightly, his face going red. "I thought I'd try a new cologne." She touched his face softly, and smiled.

"It's nice, but you've always smelled fine Ron." He smiled and resumed stroking her hair. She lay her head back on his chest happily. He'd been a lot more relaxed over this week, and it was getting far easier for Hermione to find a routine to spend time with him when he was putting in slightly more effort.

"So when are you going to show me your dorm," he whispered in Hermione's ear. She sat up slightly and turned to face him.

"Ron you know I can't. Only the Heads are allowed in there. It's the rules."

"You're Head Girl," he smiled at her, "you can change the rules."

"I can't. And even if I could…there are charms to prevent you from being allowed up the stairs."

He cracked a cunning grin, "I'll bring my broom."

Hermione narrowed her eyes slowly and pushed herself back from him, "No Ron."

"Hermione…c'mon" Hermione stood up, and smoothed her skirt down, signalling an end to the conversation. Ron didn't normally pressure her, but she understood his want to take it further… after his relationship with Lavender, Hermione must seem like such a downturn. She wasn't nervous or anything, she just never really felt like it with Ron. Not that there was anything wrong with him. When he wasn't in a bad mood, he was normally almost perfect… and she should really give him a break, but she was old fashioned and wanted it to be perfect. "I have to go, I've got patrol."

Harry stared up at the two from his seat, before checking his watch. "Hermione it's nearly midnight, just stay here. No one should be patrolling this late."

"Harry I have to. I'll see you all at the match tomorrow, good luck!" She smiled and left, feeling completely confused at her fast changing mood. She didn't have patrol, she'd just lied to her friends and now she was wandering back through the darkened corridors completely alone.


	7. Chapter 7

Gryffindor were down by 70 points, and Ron was not in a good mood. His keeping skills had improved so much over the years but unfortunately so had Slytherins, and with each quaffle he let in, he grew angrier and angrier. He could see Harry and Malfoy speeding past keeping a watchful eye around the stadium for the golden snitch, but unless Harry caught it, they'd have no chance winning the game at the rate they were going.

"Ron get your bloody head out your arse and guard the hoops like you do in practice" Ginny shouted as she flew past him, the quaffle tucked neatly under her left arm. He seethed and watched her pass it between the Gryffindor chasers, neatly looping around the green team. The bludger zoomed past his right ear and he shouted at the young beaters, telling them to pay attention before he got seriously injured, but it was at that moment he noticed a hush over the stadium. Malfoy and Harry were diving towards the ground at an alarming rate, the firebolt and Nimbus2001 racing neck and neck towards the flittering golden speck moving rapidly a foot from the ground.

Gryffindors started screaming, and Ron thought Harry had finally caught the snitch, but one moment later the two seekers pulled up from the deadly dive and flew once around the Ravenclaw bleachers, apparently having lost the ball amidst the grass.

Ron groaned, secretly resenting Harry for not ending the game before he could further embarrass himself. He watched as the Slytherin team secured the quaffle, and he flew towards the centre hoop, preparing to dive. The chaser looked briefly at the scoreboard and then hesitated, before throwing the ball full force, right towards Ron's face. Ron put his hand up in defence, but flinched as the ball hit him full on, knocking the wind out of him. His sister called him to pass her the ball, which he did after a moments hesitation, and he glared daggers at the green and silver chasers, seething mad at their attempts at sabotage.

Harry caught the snitch not a moment later, diving dramatically towards the ground and landing with a slight stumble, the golden snitch firmly in his grasp. He held it up to the fans around the stadium, receiving roaring applause and cheers from the Gryffindor fans. Ron lowered himself towards the ground along with all the other players, but rather than celebrate, he was at the throat of the cheating chaser the moment his feet touched the ground.

"Oi," he snarled aggressively. "Don't think I didn't notice what you did you good-for-nothing, slimy little snake." The chaser put his hands up trying to defend himself from the Gryffindor keeper's anger, but had no words in response. "You're all the same aren't you. Untrustworthy, devious trolls the lot of you. Next time you try something like that I'll-"

"Let go of my chaser Weasley." Ron turned angrily towards the drawling voice. "Last I checked, physical violence was not allowed in school. Drop the kid before I need to retaliate."

"Since when do you stick up for the helpless Malfoy," sneered Ron, "you're not exactly the hero type are you."

"Since the hero types started attacking them Weasley. Now drop the kid and crawl back into that hole you came out of." Ron dropped the chaser, but chose instead to lunge at Malfoy, knocking the startled blonde off of his feet. He punched Malfoy in the face before the boy could defend himself, and continued to hit him. Malfoy pushed him back, reaching for his wand in the process.

"Stupefy!" A shot of red light came from the middle of the crowd of onlookers, and Malfoy tensed, used to the feeling of being hit by spells from his time under the Dark Lord. This spell however, never reached him, instead, the ginger boy beside him dropped like a sack of potatoes to the ground, out cold. Hermione rushed over, lowering her wand, a shocked and worried look on her face. She took one look at her boyfriend, assessing he was completely fine, before turning to Malfoy. The moment she laid eyes on him, her eyes widened and she gasped.

"Oh god, are you alright?!" Her hand reached towards his face, as if to stroke it, but in that moment they both recoiled, unaware of what was happening. "Your face…"

"Easily healed." He dismissed it curtly, before turning to the lingering chaser. "Work on your aim. Win on skill. If you get caught again playing like I saw you do today, I will not defend you next time. Understood?" The chaser nodded and retreated to a safe distance. "Move Granger, I don't want to be seen with you."

"Stop being such a prat for five seconds and let me heal your nose. I think Ron broke it." She fumbled with her wand for a moment before pointing it directly at his face. Malfoy was reminded of the time she'd held him at wand point outside the castle in third year, and felt slightly nervous, though with a quiet, "episkey," his nose cracked back into place. He nodded once in her direction as a way of thanks, but refused to acknowledge her further. "There. Go see Madam Pomfrey about the bruising though, I'm afraid I don't know how to get rid of that… healing was never really my forte."

She shrugged apologetically, but stood up straight, just as McGonagall came striding over furiously. "Will somebody please _explain."_

Hermione opened her mouth, surely to dive into a long and detailed explanation, but Malfoy stared her down, silently indicating to her that she needed to shut up. "Weasley and my chaser had a bit of a disagreement. I stepped in to put a stop to it. Then Granger over reacted and stupefied him so he wouldn't do anything stupid. We resolved the problem, it's fine."

"The hue of your face suggests otherwise Mr Malfoy."

"On my way to put a stop to it, I got abused by Potty's fan club on their way to congratulate him. I got shoved, and I tripped. Fell flat on my face, but I didn't notice the pain until afterwards when Granger took a look at my face. She healed my nose, said it was broken." Hermione's mouth gaped at the story he was selling to McGonagall. He spoke so smoothly, and without hesitation, that she wondered how often one would have to lie to become such an accomplished liar under such pressure. McGonagall stared at her, awaiting conformation, and Hermione snapped her mouth shut and nodded her head firmly. The head mistress walked off with a huff after telling the students to clear the stadium, and Hermione sat beside Ron's sleeping form think of what had just happened.

One word was all she could think of in regards to Malfoy's behaviour.

_Why?_


	8. Chapter 8

**_"_****_You know what needs to be done Draco. It's the only way._** **_- Narcissa"_**

Draco scrunched his face in annoyance at the final words in his mother's letter, before ripping the parchment in half and throwing it into the fireplace. He growled in frustration, pacing back and forth through the room, plans swirling around his brain to find a way out of this problem.

His mind came up blank.

Had they not proved their worth? How could the ministry let it reach this point? Another uprising would only be certain due to the reaction being brought upon the death eaters by the ministry, and the prevention only made Draco wish for it more. He was not happy feeling trapped like an animal in the ministry's cage.

A door slammed shut, awakening him from his brooding. The young witch burst into the room, face flushed and eyes sparking. Malfoy could tell he should not engage her, but she opened her mouth before he could leave the room quick enough.

"I'm so angry with that prat!" She snarled, throwing her cloak onto the loveseat before sitting beside it. "Seamus told me that Ron said that he's mad at _me _for stupefying _him_ when _he's_ the one who started that damn fight in the first place!"

"That's all well and good Granger," he drawled lazily, enjoying the glare she sent in his direction, "but why are you telling me."

"Because you were a part of it! Why is it that you, Draco Malfoy, the biggest prat in existence, can stick up for a student and then lie to a teacher to defend the jerk whose fault this all is… and actually do something halfway _decent_, but Ron struggles to string two nice words together?!"

Malfoy sat in the adjacent armchair, a frown gracing his face. "If that was meant to be a compliment you need to work on your people skills Granger." She blushed and put her head down in embarrassment, realising the poor choice of words she'd used. "If you have such an issue with the Weasel, just drop him."

"Drop him?" She stood up and stared at him intently, "I can't drop him…"

"I don't see why not. In my opinion, the fact that you've kept someone so worthless around for so long just proves how low your standards are Granger." He stood, brushing off invisible dust from his pants, and turned away from her. "Anyway, as thrilling as this conversation is, I've just remembered I really don't care. I have homework to do. So I'll be off."

Malfoy headed towards the door leaving Hermione feeling both annoyed and confused. The problem was that he'd made a fair point to her. Ron had done nothing but upset her recently, and his insensitivity and lack of affection was growing to the point where dating did not seem to make much sense.

Hermione knew she had two options. She could either "Drop him," as Malfoy had so delicately put it, or she could try to fix it. She walked towards the portrait hole, intending to find her boyfriend and sort out their issues.

Hermione entered the Gryffindor common room a few moments later to find Harry and Ginny sitting doing what looked like potions homework in the corner of the room. She approached them, looking around the room for Ron, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Harry, Ginny, have you seen Ron?"

They looked up at her and smiled in greeting before Harry frowned. "He said he was going to meet you in the library?"

"I didn't tell him to do that? That's strange." She headed back out the portrait hole towards the library, wondering why Ron would make plans and then forget to invite her. He wasn't usually so careless with things like this.

She crept past the librarian quietly, searching through the aisles for the familiar red hair she'd become so accustomed too. He was at none of the study tables and Hermione began to grow worried, wondering where he could have possibly gone. Did he actually intend to meet up with her? Or had he lied to Harry and Ginny?

"Granger when I leave the dorms, it's purely to get away from you. I don't expect to be followed."

She clutched her chest, jumping slightly out of shock. Malfoy sat at one of the tables, his Ancient Runes essay spread across the table, a slight smudge of ink wiped across his chin, and an inquisitive eyebrow quirked in a mocking nature. He smirked as he saw her jump, and Hermione quickly tried to compose herself.

"I was looking for Ron."

"Did I ask?" She glared at him and he smirked. She hated how much enjoyment he got from making her feel uncomfortable.

"Don't be such a prat we are meant to be civil to each other…_Remember?_" she spat icily, earning another smirk from him.

"Why so cold Granger, this is me being civil. It's not my fault you're so hard to get along with."

"You are incorrigible."

"Sorry Granger, but having an impressive vocabulary won't change my opinion of you." She groaned in frustration, tugging on her hair and turning her head around looking for a way out of this conversation, but saw nothing. He rose arrogantly from his seat, towering over the small girl, stretching his muscles, and Hermione could not help but glance at the length of stomach which was visible from his shirt lifting as he stretched. It was flat and muscular, and she blushed in embarrassment at the snail trail which disappeared down his waistband.

Malfoy noticed her blush and stared down, realising what was causing her face to turn the same shade as her boyfriends hair. His smirk grew into an actual smile and he secretly congratulated himself for putting the Gryffindor in such an awkward position. "Looking's free Granger… touching will cost you."

"Shut up Malfoy you prick. I didn't come here to be harassed by you, I'm going to go find Ron." She spat at him, turning around and striding away trying to cover her previous slip up.

"I think I was the one being harassed." She stopped in her tracks, and felt her face heat up, whether it was from embarrassment or anger she couldn't tell. She was just about to give him a piece of her mind when she noticed movement in the corner of her eye.

A couple came stumbling out from behind a bookshelf, laughing quietly. Hermione recognised the girl as a Hufflepuff from the year below. She was about to reprimand her for misbehaving in the library but a hand covered her mouth before she could speak. Malfoy stood behind her, his eyes narrowed coldly towards the couple, refusing Hermione the chance to speak. He dragged them into the shadows, hiding the two feuding students from the passing couple.

Hermione sent him a questioning gaze but he ignored her, pointing only to the couple and growling incoherent words beneath his breath. Hermione froze, her heart beating wildly, and she watched the blonde take hold of the boy's hand and whisper something to him. He grinned widely and dragged her out the empty library by the hand, the pair giggling over a shared secret on the way out.

Hermione dropped to the ground and dragged her knees to her chest, ignoring the boy behind her. It may not have been what it'd looked like. She could have been wrong.

She was trying to fool herself, but it wasn't working. Her mind whirred and she stared at the spot she'd just seen them exit from. How could she be so stupid. Her mind kept replaying the scene, over and over… and all she could think of was the boy's hand gripping tightly to the blondes, the way he laughed at her words.

"_Ron."_


	9. Chapter 9

He hadn't spoken to her in a week. It wasn't that he didn't want to, or that he had decided it would be wiser to not bring it up… it's just Draco Malfoy could honestly not think of a single thing to say to her.

He'd been pacing for a while now, at the bottom of her staircase, not sure of how to approach the subject. _"Hey, is it a good time to say I told you he was a good-for-nothing, weasel-faced, rat bag?"_ probably weren't the right words… he wasn't trained for this. Compassion and pity were two of the emotions that Voldemort had denied his following to show. Love was weak, there was only power, and those strong enough to use it.

Now Draco had never fully agreed with this concept. The idea of love seemed silly to him, but to suggest it did not ignite strength within people was the idea of a fool. Anyone could see the effect it had, it's just Draco was not well accustomed to it. Nor was he sure how to comfort a girl who had found out she'd been cheated on, especially when he did not particularly like her in the first place.

What an odd situation this was for him.

The Weasel still did not know she knew however, and this was her advantage. She could pull this information out when he least expected it, she had the chance to tear him down, to rip him apart, to break down the walls of fame that 1/3 of the Golden Trio could claim as his own.

She wouldn't though. Gryffindors, they really knew how to ruin golden opportunities.

His mother's words rang in his ears once more, encapsulating him. He could not escape the dull threat of what was required by him. "**_It's the only way." _**

He kicked the ground in frustration and stared once more at the door to her room before heading out, wondering whether she was ever planning on leaving.

To answer his question, she wasn't. Hermione sat on the floor of her room, surrounded by torn photographs, holes burnt through some, shreds of paper lay across the floor. She'd been cleansing her room, ridding herself of all things he'd ever given her, determined to close the door on the part of her life where she ever thought he cared for her.

She was not trying to be pathetic, or weak. Hermione had always been the independent type of girl, who was head strong and able to stride through life on her own. She had not needed Ron, and now she realised that he certainly did not need her she wondered why they'd both tried so hard to desperately cling to each other. It sent anger coursing through her veins at the thought. If he'd been so finished with her, done enough to go for other women behind her back, he should have had the decency to at least break it off.

He was a coward. He'd always been a coward, and now she knew why he was so afraid that he would amount to nothing. Now she knew why he'd always been so upset by being over shadowed by first his brothers, and now Harry. Ron was not mature enough for the fame or the glory. It would be wasted on him.

Hermione picked up a tacky stuffed bear he'd bought her over the summer and hurled it out the window. A disgruntled yell rang across the grounds, most likely from the poor soul who'd been hit by her 'token of love.'

"It hurts doesn't it!" Hermione yelled back out of spite. A wave of shame passed over her quickly as she realised how inappropriate she was being. As the Head Girl, she couldn't be throwing tantrums and yelling at students…

As Head Girl, she couldn't be cooped up in her room for a full week at a time, missing all her classes and ignoring her friends. She was setting a bad example. Hermione sighed and got herself up off the floor in an ungraceful manner, heading towards the conjoined bathroom, vowing to make herself presentable.

If Ron wanted to have secrets, they could have secrets. Hermione was going to wait for the best opportunity to tell him she knew. She turned on the shower and washed the run make up off of her face, shampooing her bushy locks, and feeling better than she had in a while.

After tugging on some clothes, she headed down the stairs, glad to see Malfoy was nowhere in sight. She hadn't seen him since the library, and that wasn't a moment she wanted to happen at any point soon. Undoubtably he was revelling in her misery and Ron's infidelity. She sighed and stared up at his door. She wasn't too sure about that actually, he'd seemed fairly angry towards the red head at the library.

_"Ron."_

_Malfoy hesitated for a moment behind her, before he grabbed Hermione by the shoulders, shaking her slightly. "Granger, you need to get up."_

_"Leave me alone." He sighed audibly, lowering himself towards the ground, squatting in front of her trying to get her attention. She pushed her head down further, refusing to let him see her watering eyes._

_"Granger people are going to come in for study hall soon. Do you want them all to see you like this?" The prat had a point but she did not want to move. "Don't waste your time being upset about the Weasel. He's a waste of oxygen." Malfoy's knuckles grew paler as he clenched his fists. Eyes narrowing towards the spot they'd last seen him. "Cheating is below even me, and that's saying something."_

_"Comparing him to you isn't making me feel better Malfoy." She whispered. He almost didn't catch the insult, but it actually made him smile slightly. _

_"Don't take your aggression out on me Granger, I'm actually trying to be nice."_

_"I didn't know you knew what that meant."_

_"I heard about it once in a book. Strange concept, I don't think I like it." She smiled slightly, tears leaking from her eyes, and he was tempted to wipe them from her face. He hesitated, but kept his arms at his side. "You need to get up. I feel bad leaving you alone, but I also really don't want to be seen with you. Reputations to keep, you know."_

_She swatted her arm out at him, almost thankful for the light banter he was using to distract her from the hurt she was feeling. "You're such a prat."_

_"And you're a know-it-all. I thought we've established this already?" He lifted her to her feet and she wiped her eyes, stepping away from him as she did. He pretended not to notice. "If you tell anyone I was nice to you by the way, I'll kill you."_

She'd left him after that, confused by the actual genuine kindness he'd shown hidden beneath the crude insults and half hearted mockery. Hermione was smart enough to realise that people matured and changed with age, but Malfoy had never seem to show this, up until a month ago. Now it was striking her as amazing at the way she found it so easy to talk to him, albeit they may fight more than talk, but never was it as serious as it had been in previous years. For god's sake she almost considered him a friend. _Almost,_ but not quite. She hadn't quite reached that level of crazy desperation just yet.

She was just about to push her way through the portrait hole when it burst open and he came striding through. Speak of the devil and the devil shall appear. He almost didn't notice her, but she cleared her throat quietly, stopping him in his tracks.

"Granger!" He exclaimed in surprise, taking a step back. "You're alive."

"Of course I'm alive Malfoy."

"Well I couldn't be sure. I haven't seen you in a week. You're bloody friends were convinced I'd murdered you the moment you didn't show up for potions." Her eyes widened and he wondered what he'd said wrong.

"You spoke to my friends?!" She stepped closer, invading his personal space, her cheeks reddening in panic. "Did you tell them what we saw Malfoy?"

"Of course not you crazy bint, they'd never believe me even if I had anyway, so back off." She breathed a sigh of relief, before realising her close proximity. She blushed deeper, taking a quick step backwards, missing the quick cheeky grin which spread across his face. He'd done it again. She was so easy to embarrass.

"Where are you going?" He questioned, staring at her tight jeans and form fitting jumper. She crossed her arms defensively at his gaze, so he stared back into her eyes, realising she'd become uncomfortable.

"It's Hogsmeade weekend. I told Harry and R-…" She paused, glassy eyed before clearing her throat and clenching her jaw furiously. "Harry and _Ron_ that I'd meet them at the Three Broomsticks a while ago. So that's where I'm heading."

"You can't be serious Granger. You're meeting up with him?" He looked at her as if any respect she'd gained over the previous month had immediately been lost.

"He doesn't know I know. And until I decide it's the right moment, I need to act as normal as possible." Malfoy's face shifted again, a smirk playing upon his lips.

"I didn't expect you to toy with him Granger, I'm impressed."

"Thanks." She pushed past him and headed towards the door, expecting their conversation to be over, but Malfoy stopped her before she could leave.

"I could help you know." She turned back towards him inquisitively, and he grinned devilishly, his silver eyes gleaming with malice. "I could join you."

"Malfoy I don't think you understand. I'm going to spend time with Ginny, Harry and Ron." She said slowly, emphasising the names incase he'd become dimmer over the week she'd not seen him. He sighed, wondering why he was suggesting this, wondering whether he could turn back. It was too late though. Her voice rang in his head again and he winced.

**_"You know what needs to be done Draco" _**He sauntered towards her slowly, and got very close. Her breathing hitched slightly, she tried to convince herself that it was from alarm, and he chuckled inwardly. It felt good to know he still had some sort of effect on women.

"I'm well aware Granger, but answer me this. What could possibly make him angrier than seeing you and I…_together."_


	10. Chapter 10

"This is probably the stupidest idea you've ever let pass through that thick skull of yours Malfoy." She hissed, self-consciously folding her arms tighter against her body, shoulders shrugging defensively to cover her face from prying eyes of passing pupils.

A soft snigger alerted her to his amusement, and she sighed inwardly. "I don't even understand. What's in it for you? You hate Harry and Ron."

He lifted his chin slightly, his silver eyes burning holes into the backs of peoples heads. "I'm doing you a favour."

"But _why?_" Her cheeks flushed from the cold and she was almost thankful she could see The Three Broomsticks a few hundred metres away, until she remembered how awkward the encounter with the boys would be now that Malfoy was coming…

Not that it wouldn't be awkward anyway.

"Because you're going to screw this up and I know it. If you want him to suffer you need to toy with the Weasel, not hex him once and be done with it." She stared up at his pale face, glaring at his lack of faith. She was not completely useless.

"What are you planning Malfoy?" His mouth twitched and he finally met her gaze, quickly looking away as he realised she was staring.

"Nothing Granger. Just trying to keep my position as Head Boy, this is civil, isn't it?" Hermione felt as if there was something he was not telling her.

Before she could open her mouth in protest, Malfoy pushed through the large doors into The Three Broomsticks, smiling softly for a moment at the noisy chatter and the smell of Butterbeer before reclining back into his stony facade. Hermione was truly tired of trying to read the boy's thoughts and emotions, it was like staring at a blank portrait. Occasionally there was a splash of colour, but it left as quickly as it appeared.

Hermione's eyes scanned the crowd of chattering students, looking for her three friends. She saw them sitting in the far corner, facing away from the door, and was hugely grateful for this. It would give her time to compose herself before surely ruining everything by coming in with Malfoy. He stood slightly behind her, his biceps almost grazing her shoulders, and she quickly darted away from him and towards the three Gryffindors, confused by his recent change in behaviour towards her.

"Hermione!" Harry saw her and waved her over with a grin. She happily accepted the invitation, pushing past other customers and taking a seat beside Ron, who smiled at her. Her eyes hardened, but she forced her mouth to form a smile back.

"Hey Harry, Hey Ginny," She turned to the boy besides her. "Ron."

He frowned slightly and turned to ask her whether something was wrong, but at that moment Malfoy had reached their table. Ron stood so quickly that his chair was knocked backwards, his legs hitting the table, forcing butterbeer to slosh from their glasses and onto the tabletop. Ginny gave a small yelp as it dripped onto her sweater, but everyone was too distracted by the handsome blonde. He turned to look at Harry, and Hermione could see him attempting to mask his hatred. "Potter," he looked at Ginny and nodded. "Red."

"Malfoy," Harry hissed quietly, furiously staring at the man before him, "What do you want."

"A seat preferably," he drawled, nonchalantly. Hermione ducked her head down so her friends would not see her smile at his sassy response. He was such an ass. "I think I'll take the one next to Granger."

"Like hell you will," Ron seethed, approaching Malfoy with his chest pushed out and his fists clenched.

"I think you'll find Weasley," Malfoy said, this time a little more aggressively towards the red head, "that she would very much like for me to sit with her. Considering she invited me, after all."

Ron took a step back, and everyone stared at Hermione. Her face blushed bright red, and it only got worse as Malfoy took the seat next to her, casually throwing his arm around her chairs back. Ron's eyes popped at this action, and Harry and Ginny sat gobsmacked.

"You invited him Hermione?"

"Congratulations Weasley, it seems as if you _do_ know how to listen. Someone should notify the professors, they'll be amazed."

Ron lunged towards Malfoy, but Hermione stood from her seat and intercepted the two men. "Malfoy and I are working on-"

"-Our relationship."

"-Our _friendship_, as Heads," she emphasised, staring angrily at Malfoy's interjection. His lips twitched into a smile and he gave her a sly wink. It was so quick she could have imagined it. Ron, meanwhile, had turned a dangerous shade of red, and Hermione had never seen him look so furious. Maybe Malfoy's plan would actually work… she may have to thank him later. "As Heads we need to be civil and promote unity, so Malfoy and I are spending a little quality time together."

"Is that where you've been all week? Shacking up with Malfoy behind my back?"

It was Malfoy's turn to angrily get to his feet, and he was shocked as he felt a small hand lay tenderly against his forearm, tugging him slightly down. Hermione's eyes showed warning, she was telling him not to give it away. He angrily sat back down as Ginny and Harry gave a synchronised "Ron!"

"For your information Weasley," he spoke with a force calm, jaw clenched tightly and eyes piercing the red head, "She's been sick, and frankly I don't blame her for wanting to escape from seeing your ugly mug each day."

"Stop." Hermione spoke quietly but both boys turned towards her and obediently shut up. "I just want to have a nice meal with my friends so can you please…just…stop." Everyone was quiet for a moment before Harry awkwardly began to talk quidditch strategies to distract the boys from the rising tension.

Ron was still flushed, and keeping a close eye on Malfoy. He made the effort to throw his arm around Hermione's shoulders, and a wave of floral scent washed over her. She felt sick.

"Did you get a new cologne again Ronald?" She asked through clenched teeth, sensing Malfoy's attention turn from quidditch towards their discussion.

He blushed slightly and she could feel the muscles in his arm tense. "Yes."

"It's odd, it smells a lot like something the girls I shared a dorm with used to have." She turned her eyes innocently towards his wide ones, "The company must've come out with a mens line."

"Y-Yeah. They must've."

Ginny turned away from her boyfriend and stared towards the other three. She took notice of Ron's flushed face and panicked expression, Hermione's quiet attitude and stiff body language, and Malfoy… Malfoy glaring at her brother as if he were scum. Not just her brother though, his eyes were fixated on Ron's arm, placed awkwardly around the clearly uncomfortable Hermione. She looked at his white knuckles gripping tightly to the table, and the way his body was leaning slightly towards Hermione, as if he was stopping himself from getting between the two. Hermione had said they were 'trying to be civil,' but this was more than civilised, this was different. Ginny could see something happening, and she was sure as hell going to figure it out.

"Hermione, I need to go to the loo, will you come with?" Hermione stared nervously between the three boys, worried that leaving them alone would end disastrously, but Harry gave her a hesitant smile to reassure her. She left her seat, shoving Ron's heavy arm off her small shoulders, and giving Malfoy a glare, telling him to behave.

He smirked in response.


	11. Chapter 11

"Explain to me what's going on."

Hermione sighed and pushed her hair back from her face, desperately trying to avoid staring the younger witch in the eyes. "Nothing Gin, honestly."

"It certainly doesn't seem like nothing. Since when are you and Malfoy such good chums?" Ginny squared her shoulders and rounded on Hermione, not falling for her feeble lies.

"I don't know, he's different Gin, honestly he's not as bad as he used to be…"

"Malfoy's don't change Hermione. He's tricking you, there must be something he needs."

Hermione shook her head wildly, reaching towards the girl in encouragement, "Honestly Gin, he's not tricking me. I have nothing to offer. He's just….different."

"You have Harry."

Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes before shoving Ginny slightly on the arm, "_You _have Harry. If he wanted Harry shouldn't he go for you?" Ginny shook her head and tried to interrupt her but Hermione pushed on, "he hasn't even really mentioned Harry until today anyway, and we chat fairly often. Plus he knows I have Ron"

Ginny raised her eyebrows defensively and Hermione realised the implications. " Oh honestly Ginny, it's just a Heads thing. He isn't trying to kill Ron or Harry, McGonagall just need us to promote unity to encourage students after the war…We have too.."

"-Don't lie to me Hermione. Somethings happened, I can tell! You've been avoiding us for days and now on the moment we've been planning since the Hogsmeade trip was announced, you have him crash our double date?"

Hermione dropped her head down, feeling slightly ashamed for ruining this date for Harry and Ginny, but the redhead did not stop. "And you've been so cold to Ron. If you don't want to date him anymore thats fine but stop leading him on, if that's the case, just drop him, it's so unfair to him if you don't."

The brunettes head snapped up suddenly, and her eyes flashed, silencing the girl in front of her. "Don't speak of things you have no business in Ginevra." Hermione moved past her, and out the door, letting it slam shut behind her.

Draco watched her exit the bathroom in a fury, and braced himself for an angry retort, or a public meltdown, but nothing came. She simply grabbed his hand and tugged him to his feet, muttering an excuse to Harry, before leaving The Three Broomsticks quickly with the blonde in tow. He dropped her hand as quickly as possible as soon as they'd left the Gryffindor's sight, choosing instead to push her roughly against the back wall of the pub, out of sight of any onlookers.

"Explain," he whispered slowly, not wishing to upset her further.

"Ginny." She seethed, and glared at his cocked eyebrow, "Ginny thinks it's not fair of me to be leading Ronald on when I've clearly lost interest."

"How ironic," he drawled, lips quirking into a small smile before noticing her glare. "That family really is a disgrace to the wizarding name, I don't think I've ever met anyone quite so thick."

Hermione sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly against the rough stones behind her, the angry resolve melting from her face. "I shouldn't have snapped at her. It's not her fault, she's just trying to be a good sister."

"She's making incorrect assumptions, of course you got angry."

Hermione made a noise of disapproval before pushing him slightly away from her. She'd not realise how close his proximity had been, and his breath was tickling her skin, making it hard to concentrate. "Stop." Malfoy stepped backwards, raising his hands in surrender, left confused once more as to what he'd been doing wrong. "Stop being so considerate, and caring…and decent."

He chuckled underneath his breath, "Problem Granger?"

"I'm not used to thinking of you as…" He stepped closer towards her and her face flushed red.

"As?"

"…As a nice guy."

"Oh." Hermione may have been mistaken, but what looked like disappointment flashed upon Malfoy's face, disappearing quickly as his stony exterior returned. "Well I'm sorry to disappoint."

"You're just different. I'm not used to it okay? Don't get angry."

"Funnily enough Granger, people are capable of change, however gradual it may be. I thought you of all people would be able to recognise this, but I suppose today, both of us are left shocked and disappointed."

"Can you stop flipping that hormonal switch of yours Malfoy, it's getting tiresome to keep up with someone who goes from acting like the Bloody Baron to Moaning Myrtle after one disagreeable comment."

"_I'm the one with the hormonal issues?_ Are you **kidding** me?! You're so hard to get along with because all you ever do is snap at people and push them away. It's no wonder you couldn't keep the attention of the only boy to ever care for you!" She flinched as if he'd slapped her, but he moved closer, his eyes glaring holes into hers.

"I was wrong Malfoy," She whispered bitingly, "You aren't nice at all. You're still that stuck up little prat of a boy that no one wanted to befriend on the first day of school."

He growled and pushed himself away from her, pacing back and forth in front of the girl, glaring at her crossed arms and daring demeanour. "Fine Granger! If you have such a problem with my attitude, stop sticking your nosy, insufferable head into my problems, and I'll stay the hell away from whatever issues you can't deal with, and hopefully I can live out the rest of this year happily _away from you, _just like I initially, and _always_ wanted_." _Malfoy paused, staring into her eyes which were glossy with unshed tears, and then spat directly at her feet, before sauntering away without looking back.

Hermione dropped to the floor, gathering her legs close to her body, shielding herself from the world. She would not let more tears fall. Hermione's brain began to over think the entirety of their conversation… his expressions, reactions, emotions.. She didn't think he was trying to trick her, but it didn't make sense to her, now that she'd actually thought about it, for him to suddenly decide to help aid her in her quest to upset Ron. She cursed her active imagination, and leaned her head backwards against the cool stone wall, wishing to take back the cruel things she'd said to him.

She'd apologise, and hopefully they would be alright. He'd only said those words in a fit of anger, he could not have truly believed them, otherwise why would he spend time with her?

Why would he go through the effort of making her trust him?

What was he playing at?

Ginny's words replayed in her mind, over and over, _"Malfoy's don't change Hermione. He's tricking you, there must be something he needs." _Hermione squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block them out, but the seed of doubt had been planted. _"He's tricking you, he's tricking you, there must be something he needs…"_

_And suddenly Malfoy was there, standing before her, his arm perched delicately on his staircase's railing. The cold silver of his eyes stormed before her and she felt her heart rate quicken. "They think we are going to rise again."_

_His shoulders slumped slightly, but before Hermione could respond, he was up the stairs and in his room. _


	12. Chapter 12

Hermione's eyes flashed open, unaware of her surroundings. She was slumped against the wall on the street adjacent to The Three Broomsticks, and dusk was falling around her. The sky's bright orange glow lit up her face, which was sparkling from the tears she'd must have shed while unconscious.

Hermione got gingerly to her feet, brushing the dirt from her jeans. Her eyes swivelled around, taking in the hustle and bustle of the street just metres away from her hiding spot. The memory of Malfoy's fight with her came back to her in a flash, and a weight settled down on her chest. She could not decide whether she should confront him about her new arising suspicions or to see how he would react to her from now on. That is, if he planned on speaking to her ever again.

She sighed and pushed herself forwards towards the busy street, blending in with the students around her, each of them rushing to get home to the castle in time for the feast. Hermione was half tempted to just skip the meal and go straight back to her dormitory, feeling slightly unwell after spending so much time curled up in the gutter, but her legs carried her along with the rest of her peers, and she found herself outside the Great Hall within what seemed like minutes.

The doors pushed open to reveal a warm sight, loud chatter rising up from the four crowded house tables, the ceiling slowly growing darker as the sky outside filled with stars. Hermione was once more struck by the beauty of the castle, and of magic itself, reminding her how differently the muggles had to live their lives.

She sat down beside Harry, Ginny and Ron, and ignored the fact that Ginny was struggling between ignoring her completely, or sending her deathly glares across the chicken. It was Ron who caught her attention. The instance she sat down, he scooted as far from her as possible before a 3rd year gave a disgruntled noise of protest.

Ron snarled at the child and instead turned towards Hermione, who sighed inwardly before quirking an eyebrow up at the boy. This only seemed to turn his mood more sour.

"You've been gone for hours." He hissed at her quietly, attempting to not draw attention to their blossoming lovers quarrel.

"I am aware of that Ronald," Hermione replied back smoothly, coldly turning away from him to reach for the Yorkshire puddings piled on the plate in front of her.

"You left with that ferret, and disappear for ages, what the ruddy hell are you playing at?"

Hermione's hair rose on the back of her arms at Ron's insinuation, but she did not yell. "Is this jealously I'm sensing?"

"I wouldn't need to be jealous if you weren't spending so much time with that prat! You barely even talked to me at lunch, and you show up with him?"

"Yes Ronald, I have been spending time with Malfoy lately. I suppose I've changed my opinion of him."

Ron's face flushed and he reached out and gripped her wrist tightly, making her squeak in pain. "Well change it back. Stop seeing him, I won't have it."

She tried to rip her arm from his grasp but he held tighter. Her eyes narrowed towards his dull blue ones, and she hissed in retort, "I don't recall you ever being in charge of what I can or can't do. Now let go Ron." His grip loosened and she jerked her arm back, drawing Harry's attention to their argument. "I'm sick of fighting, can you just drop it."

"No."

She sighed audibly, frustration beginning to crack her resolve, and she moved farther away from the boy, "You should trust me enough to know I'm not messing around with Malfoy behind your back."

"I've seen the way you look at him! You left _holding his hand_ and you're trying to tell me nothings going on?! Bollocks! You were gone for hours with him and you come back looking all tousled and messy and you're saying you haven't been going at it?!"

Hermione stood from her chair and stared down at him, assessing his red face and angry eyes, his clenched jaw and white knuckles, and she just shook her head. tiredly. "I'm done Ron."

He stood up equally as fast, grabbing her by the shoulders. "What?"

"I'm done. I want out. I'm tired of dating you. You aren't the same boy I fell in love with and I can't deal with it. I'm done." She pushed his chest with her hands, making him stumble backwards and let go of her. Hermione looked sadly towards Harry and Ginny who were staring slack jawed at the outburst, before she dropped her head and walked away from the trio of Gryffindors, with the intention of leaving The Great Hall, feeling, if possible, worse than she did when she'd entered it.

She reached the doors, ignoring the questioning gazes of the other students, and held her head high in a defiant act of wavering pride. It was then that she took a quick glance towards the sea of silver and green to her left and saw the bright silver eyes staring directly at her. She narrowed her own and walked out of the door without a second thought, her heart beat picking its pace up slowly at the thought of seeing what had looked like concern written on the blonde boy's face.

She whispered "Water lily," to a jubilant looking water nymph and trudged through the portrait hole sullenly, kicking off her shoes and shoving her hair into a messy bun, creating an unkempt and uncaring look which matched her emotions, before dropping heavily into the cream love seat and staring at the fire.

"I messed up," she whispered sadly, watching the flames dance along the logs and secretly hating herself for the events of that day.

"How?" Hermione squeaked in surprise, her hand flying to clutch her chest, heart beating wildly. She hadn't noticed the blonde leaning against the wall right beside the closing portrait door.

"Malfoy." She whispered, shocked slightly at his quickness to begin chatting to her again. "I didn't see you come in-"

"How did you mess up?" The boy sauntered over to the armchair and gracefully sat down, contrasting her unkempt look with his natural beauty. His face remained cold and indifferent however, and Hermione was well aware that she hadn't been forgiven for her previous comments.

"I dumped him." She replied gloomily, eyes returning towards the firelight, almost hoping it could swallow her up to escape this uncomfortable encounter with the disgruntled Slytherin.

He snorted. "I thought that was a good thing?"

She laughed softly, twirling a curl between her fingers, absentmindedly looking back towards him. "I didn't make him suffer. He got angry with me… and after today, I just…" She sighed and saw an unfamiliar emotion flicker within his eyes, "I couldn't take it. So I've lost him without making him pay for cheating on me."

"It's never too late for revenge." He drawled, cooly, and Hermione's eyes widened slowly, his voice once more engulfing her thoughts. "_They think we're going to rise again."_

"I'm not good at revenge, it's not a good thing too do," she responded quickly, her heart beating wildly once more, and she slyly tried to hint to him.

"Of course it's not a good thing to do Granger," he said impatiently, "but neither is cheating."

He had a point. "I'm sorry." She said quietly. He almost didn't catch it, but his stony facade softened slightly towards the young witch. "For what I said… earlier. I didn't mean it, I was just caught in the moment. You aren't still that stuck up little prat of a boy, you're different, and it's good." He opened his mouth to speak but she quickly interrupted, "And I can accept it! I can tell that you're trying."

"Fine." He said shortly, nodding his head in approval at her apology.

"Fine?" Hermione's mouth opened in shock at the short response, unsure as to what to say. "Fine? That's it? Aren't you going to apologise?"

"Malfoy's don't apologise Granger." His lips quirked up slightly at her ruffled appearance. "I can make it up to you though. There's still time to get back at Weasley."

Alarm bells began to ring in Hermione's mind, and Ginny's warning about Malfoy began to start to sound realistic. "I don't want him hurt Malfoy."

"Of course not you silly bint, I'm Head Boy, I can't hurt him physically." His lips turned into an actual smile now and he stared at her, making her face blush slightly. Even after insulting her, he was so naturally charming. "Emotionally… Mentally however… it's easy. All you have to do is let me do the work, while you stand around and look pretty."

He glanced at her messy hair, red eyes and running makeup from the rough night she'd had and grimaced slightly. "Okay well we are going to have to fix your face… but if Weasley wants to cheat, we need to show him what he's missing."

"You're doing it again Malfoy."

"Doing what?" He replied, confused.

"Being nice." He laughed slightly and stood from the armchair, wiping invisible dust from his expensive clothing.

She watched him walked towards the stairs with an amazing amount of grace, and had to shake her head slightly to focus on his words. "-It is possible Granger."

She smiled, and dropped her head to mask her reaction. "Please stop it, it's freaking me out."

Malfoy ascended his staircase with a grin placed on his face, saying a quick and quiet goodnight, leaving Hermione feeling a mixed amount of emotions curled up on the loveseat. She glanced towards the place he'd just been, and a small amount of shock made her stand, walking towards the counter in their common room. On it lay a napkin, holding a portion of the dinner she'd missed out on being able to eat from that night's feast.

She stared up at the door labelled "HB" and smiled slightly. He'd brought her dinner. Hermione gathered the food and sat back down, once more confused by the random acts of kindness displayed by the blonde. It was so hard to think he could be plotting something nasty when he was beginning to seem so nice.

She trudged up her stairs after having the food, and tiredly slumped down onto the bed, thinking of how she fully intended to get down to the bottom of his odd behaviour the next day, before she felt herself drifting off to sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

**((Sorry for not updating quickly, I was on a bit of a holiday, but I made this chapter long so hopefully that makes up for it! Thanks for all the reviews lovelies x))**

Hermione awoke to a loud knocking on the door. She lay in bed happily for a moment before her eyes darted open, quickly sitting up in bed with the realisation that Malfoy should not have been able to climb the staircase to her room. "Malfoy?" She called out slowly, rising from her bed and quickly shoving on a pair of shorts under her oversized shirt to look halfway decent.

"C'mon Granger I don't have all day." That was not the deep drawling voice she was expecting.

"Parkinson?" A loud sigh came from outside her doorway and she decided to crack open the door slightly, grabbing her wand as a precaution. She was curious as to why, and how, Pansy had managed to get into the dorm, and was knocking on her door. Was this some form of a sick joke from Malfoy? "Why are you here…?"

Pansy pinched the bridge of her nose and put her head down, clearly already frustrated with the Gryffindor's insistent questions, before she took a look at the girl standing in front of her and groaned. "It'll take longer than expected Draco."

"I don't care, just do it!" Hermione could hear Malfoy yell from the love seat in the common room.

"What's going on?" She turned back towards Pansy Parkinson and folded her arms defensively against her chest as she began to get scrutinised by the Slytherin girl.

"Don't be so closed off Granger, I'm here because I owe Draco a favour, and he seems to think using the debt on you in a wise investment." She rolled her eyes and grabbed Hermione's arm. "Come into the bathroom with me, I need to get started, I don't have all day."

Pansy pushed her into the bathroom and sat her down in front of the floor length mirror, scrunching up her nose in disgust at Hermione's tangled bush of a mane and drowsy face. "You have fairly good skin…" She frowned and moved closer, "but your hair is atrocious. How do you go out in public like this? It's awful."

Hermione hissed under her breath at the insults she was receiving, wondering again what in the hell was happening. "Have you come purely to insult me or is there a different reason for your unwelcome presence Parkinson?" She spoke, her words coming out harsh and cool.

"Draco said you got screwed over by the Weasel. Even I think that's sad. Apparently Draco has a plan, but he said you need to be pretty for it to work, and that's where I come in. I'm fixing your look Granger. Now hold still."

Pansy pointed her wand towards Hermione's head and she tensed, her grip on her wand so tight it was almost snapping. The young witch mumbled some quick latin spell work, and Hermione's eyes widened as she watched her chocolate locks slowly uncurl, losing their frizzy appearance and becoming sleek and shiny. The smooth, straight locks hung from her head, making her face look bigger than usual, not hiding it completely underneath all the tangles. Pansy grinned smugly at the how wide Hermione's eyes had become as she stared at herself in the mirror.

"How…"

"It's a quick and simple spell which you redo once a week, I'll teach you in a moment. Look, now that your hair isn't a birds nest on your head.." She paused, stepping back and staring at Hermione, "you actually don't require very much make up. I could almost leave it be, and you'd be what the boys would call, "cute"… But Draco asked for stunning so I'll fix your eyes up and be done."

Hermione was lost for words as she watched Pansy apply black eyeliner around her eyes, intensifying their chocolatey colour, and making her face more structured. "Thank you…"

Pansy stood backwards and nodded at her work, signalling it was time for Hermione to stand and get dressed, before she left the bathroom without a single word. Hermione pulled her school skirt and shirt on, gazing fixedly at the mirror, appreciating the difference in her appearance. She almost wished she could bring Pansy back and hug her, but she knew that the girl had only helped her due to Draco, and that in no way were they now suddenly friends.

"Granger what the bloody hell is taking you so long?!" She heard Malfoy shout from downstairs, and she took a glance at the clock on her wall, swearing internally at how late it had gotten, class started in half an hour and she hadn't had breakfast yet.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she replied, hoping down the stairs on one foot as she ungracefully shoved the other into a school shoe.

"Let me see what Pansy did." Malfoy stood and came closer, staring at her with his blank face, no hint of approval or disapproval present. His eyes slid from her hair, to her face, and then slowly down, making Hermione blush awkwardly. "Not bad. Not over the top either. It'll work."

Hermione recoiled slightly at the response, she'd been expecting somewhat better, although she needed to remember that it was Malfoy who was speaking. "What now?"

He smirked at her hesitance and seemed to be enjoying her lack of knowledge at the situation. "Isn't it obvious Granger? I got Pansy to come fix you up a little bit so that when the Weasel gets a look at you he'll be fuming mad."

"Why would he be fuming mad?"

"Well for one thing, you were already out of his league before you fixed that mess you called hair, but now he will be hitting himself repeatedly because you are much better looking than he could ever hope to seduce." Hermione's eyes widened at the quick passing of the words 'better looking,' realising that he did actually seem to think the different hair was a positive change. "Not to mention, if he was jealous of my conversations with you beforehand… he should get prepared for an angry day ahead of him."

"So you're going to make him jealous?"

He almost smiled at her, but maintained the stony facade long enough to reply, "I'm going to make him regret ever messing with you."

"Why though Malfoy. Why? I don't understand your part in this." She stared up at him, her neck craning in order to make direct eye contact, hoping to somehow get some form of reaction from him which would explain to her what was going on. "I don't get it… Do you actually… yknow.. care?" His eyes flashed and she winced a little bit at the wording of her question, but remained staring into his silver eyes.

"I honestly don't know Granger." He said quieter than usual, staring intently at her. He took a step forward and her breathing hitched slightly. "I've been doing the wrong thing for so long. I've made so many mistakes, and I've been nothing but a prat to you since day one." His jaw clenched and his words grew intense. "So many bad things… maybe this is my chance for redemption. I want to change my fate, and if that means driving him crazy and getting him mad with regret over you… then I don't see why I shouldn't."

She had to resist the urge to wrap her arms around his torso, reminding herself again and again that this was Draco Malfoy. That maybe Ginny could be correct about his plans.

He'd seemed so genuine though.

Who was she to deny him the chance to try to change. If he were to have his fates unravelled, changed and torn down before him to grow again as a positive entity then she may as well let him use her problem to help.

"What do I have to do."

Malfoy chuckled slightly, shifting his bag's shoulder strap over his body, and striding towards the portrait hole. "Nothing Granger, act natural. I mean… blushing will help, but I seem to be able to get that reaction out of you just fine on my own."

"You're such a prat."

"You didn't deny it though. Tsk, Tsk Granger, one might thing you're beginning to find me attractive." She blushed again, but stared angrily at the back of his head, watching his form retreat through the doorway. "Class is in ten, you may want to run, nerd."

It did not occur to Hermione, as she'd been dashing through the corridors on her way to Defence Against The Dark Arts, that she would have no place to sit in the classroom, due to her fight with Ron. Harry would, no doubt, be sitting and siding with him on the matter, much like in third year when Ron had picked fights with her over Scabbers' disappearance. She put her head up and strode through the doorway as confidently as possible, and the moment she entered the room the chattering paused.

"Looking good Hermione," Dean Thomas smiled at her as she walked past, and she beamed at him in response, happy for him to break her tension. She resisted looking towards the side of the room she knew her two friends would be sitting, instead glancing around for an empty seat.

"Granger," she heard him call her from across the room, and could tell everyone else was paying close attention to what was about to happen. "I saved you a seat."

She smiled slightly, hearing small intakes of breath from around the room at the unexpected encounter between the two, and she walked gracefully to his side, sitting down in the chair to his left. She was slightly shocked however, when he leaned in close to her.

His mouth was close beside her ear, his breath tickling the side of her neck. "He's not happy." He whispered, and she could tell without looking that he was smiling, "In fact, his face is more red than yours right now. Nice blush Granger."

If he wanted to play the game, she could play the game.

Hermione did an uncharacteristic giggle and playfully shoved his shoulder, distancing his face from hers. He pulled back in surprise, as if not expecting her to be able to react so girlishly, before running a hand through his impeccable hair. She smirked back at him and then winked.

The room went silent, and Malfoy'd mouth dropped slightly open, before he mentally shook himself, turning away from her at the exact moment their teacher entered the classroom and began an in-depth conversation about the transformation cycles of werewolves.

"Not bad Granger, you had me for a moment there." He whispered from the side of her mouth, and her heartbeat quickened from excitement. "I think Weasley's going to try to fight me. Look at him."

Hermione did a sly glance to her left at the table where Harry and Ron were sitting, and noticed Ron's knuckles clenched tightly, forming fists, and his mouth stuck firmly on a frown, hatred marking his red face.

It was the small sense of victory that kept her happy for the rest of the class, and she left feeling better than she had in a fair while, not noticing Malfoy walking behind her, watching her with a slight smile tugging at his lips.

"Oi Malfoy!" He paused for a moment at the sound of his name, knowing full well who had been angrily shouting at him.

"Weasley."

The boy dropped his bag to the ground and rounded his shoulders, approaching the blonde aggressively. "You back off of her, you hear me? She's not yours, you're worthless and you don't deserve her."

Malfoy laughed shortly at this comment, before sticking his nose up at the boy. "Of course she's not mine. She's no ones. She's not an object Weasley, and if you think that I don't deserve her, you should take a look in the mirror and think about that."

Ron snarled and lunged towards Malfoy, but he was ready, dodging neatly out of the way as if it were no effort at all.

"You think you're so much better than everyone just because your family's rich." Ron stared at him with disgust, "But you're a Death Eater, and nothing can change that. You're going to rot in Azkaban just like your worthless father, and she would never want someone like that."

Malfoy's eyes flashed dangerously at the comment and within milliseconds his wand was twirling between his fingers menacingly. "Trying to get me to hurt you won't make her hate you any less Weasley," he spoke coldly, keeping an eye on Harry in the background, who had his wand hand raised towards the blonde. "Move along, get to class, all of you. Before I take 50 house points each from every person standing here."

"One of these days you won't be Head Boy, and people won't be around to protect you Malfoy. When you finally have to fight for yourself… that's when you're going to fail. Just like in sixth year."

The hall went silent, and Malfoy turned his gaze slowly towards Ron, anger lining his face, clearly distinctive in the lantern's light casting shadows against him. "50 points from Gryffindor." He hissed, clearly restraining himself from saying anything further, "Need I continue?" At the harsh tone of his words, the remaining eighth years scattered, leaving only Ron, Harry and Malfoy.

"Ron c'mon. We have History of Magic to get to. Let's just go." Harry grabbed Ron by the shoulders and attempted to pull him away, but it was no use. The two were stuck in a staring match, the air around them cracking with anger.

"Malfoy?" The soft voice caused the blonde to turn, seeing Hermione standing there wide eyed looking very awkward. "I noticed you didn't walk back with Blaise… what's going on?"

"Granger go to class," his words were soft but his eyes showed his alarm at her being there in the middle of their argument.

"What's going on." Her voice was stronger this time as she grasped the feeling around the corridor, realising trouble had been started. "Harry."

"Hermione," he nodded, almost sadly, "I'm trying to get him to come with me to class, he's just not listening."

Ron whirled around on Harry, "Pick a side mate! She's the one who ditched us, not me!"

"Ron there's no "us," I ditched you. I fully intend to still be friends with Harry." She glanced at him awkwardly before adding, "that is.. if he wants too."

"Of course." He said, smiling softly towards her before grabbing Ron's shoulder's again, "C'mon mate."

Ron sent a menacing glare towards the witch, which caused Malfoy to step in front of her between the two. "Granger let's go, I'll walk you to class." He picked up his things and put his arm around her shoulder, leading her away from Ron and Harry.

"Seriously Hermione. You're going with him again? You're just going to become one of the sluts that follows him around…"

"Shut your mouth Weasley."

Hermione stopped in her tracks and stared at Malfoy, intimidated by how harshly his words came out. He looked as if he were calm but Hermione had gotten to know him well enough over the past few months to realise that he was holding himself back from throwing curses at Ron. She grabbed his hand with hers, feeling him go rigid beside her for a moment out of shock, before growing slightly less tense. She squeezed his palm with hers and gave a little tug, signalling to him that she wanted to leave.

She could see Ron and Harry's eyes on their holding hands, assessing the situation, and Ron was growing more and more agitated. Hermione wanted to leave before something happened that would get them into serious trouble. She tugged Malfoy's hand again and he stepped to the side of the hall, pulling her with him, before waving his arm at the other two.

"You first." His words were sharp, it was not a suggestion, but an order, and as Head Boy, Harry was well aware that he needed to listen to him. Harry dragged Ron from the spot and forced him down the hallway away from the two Heads, disappearing around the corner after a moment.

As soon as they were out of sight, Malfoy dropped Hermione's hand, and leaned against the wall tiredly. She felt as if she should say something but nothing was coming to mind that may make him feel better. "It was expected Malfoy. We knew he'd get angry…"

"I know." There was a long silence, nothing moved but the flickering of the lanterns, and Hermione made the decision that they should just skip their class and go back to the dorms. She nudged him gently, and he stood, adjusting his clothing and hair as if it had become messy from the argument he'd been having. She wasn't ready to admit that he always looked flawless.

"I'm sorry."

"There's no point apologising for something you haven't done Granger, I knew that this would happen." They walked in silence for a beat before he added, "The hand holding was a good touch. You're not a bad actor."

"I wasn't acting."

He stared at her for a moment, a small smirk growing slowly upon his face before he shook his head, "you're full of surprises."

She smiled back at him, glad for the decent conversation they'd been having for the past few days. He really was changing, "I could say the same to you Malfoy."

His smile hardened slightly, but not enough for her to notice. Hermione remained blissfuly unaware at the reaction the words had had upon the Slytherin as she clambered through the portrait hole. He stood back for a moment, staring at the doorway she'd just entered and thought about his mother's words to him, before whispering " Oh Granger…._If only you knew._"


	14. Chapter 14

Hermione threw her bag roughly to the ground before taking her seat at the front of the classroom awaiting Professor Flitwick's instructions on their work for the day. Needless to say, her day, after the encounter with Malfoy on the way back to the dorms, had gone horribly. Despite the compliments on her sudden change in hairstyle, and the stares from a number of different boys in her year group, she was unable to ignore the hateful whispers coming from the ignorant boy sitting behind her.

His whispers were loud, leading Hermione to believe that he intentionally wanted her to hear what he had to say about her new, 'trampy' appearance and his thoughts on how she was 'slutting around' with 'that arrogant blonde git.' Every once in awhile, she could hear Harry shush his friend in exasperation, begging him to just shut up and pay attention to the task at hand, no doubt sick of hearing the same conversation repeatedly from the same wizard throughout the day.

Hermione sighed and leaned her head against the cool wooden desk, taking a moment to relax before refocusing her attention to the front. Ron may not see her waver, she was going to seem calm and collected the entire time until she dropped the bombshell of knowing about his library visits with the other girls. She twiddled her wand between her thin fingers mindlessly going over her conversation with Malfoy earlier that morning.

_"Malfoy?" She called out expectantly waiting for the boy to enter the room behind her. She saw him stick his head through the portrait hole, raising a questioning eyebrow at the call of his name, and she smiled softly. "Are you planning on coming in or are you going to stand out there like a prat all day."_

_"Inviting me into your living quarters Granger? Take me out to dinner first, please." He grinned like the Cheshire Cat, and Hermione wanted to smack him, but without further hesitation he entered the room. "I honestly don't know how you put up with him so long."_

_He watched her smile fade quickly at this remark, but his words hung clearly in the air. "He wasn't always like this. I mean, he's always been fairly immature… but angry and bitter? No… he used to be sweet and endearing. Goofy and frustrating yes… but in a loveable way. He was the kind of guy I imagined a future with, a happy marriage, two children… just a blissful eternity. But I suppose fate works in mysterious ways. He will never understand the true act of commitment, and I…" She put her head down, sinking slowly into the love seat, "I will never trust someone so easily again."_

_"You can love without trust Granger, the two don't go hand in hand."_

_"How often have you loved Malfoy? How often do you place your trust in someone. Really think about it, and tell me the two were not placed together."_

_"All I know Granger, is that in the time of The Dark Lord, I did not love those with whom I trusted, and I did not trust those with whom I loved. At the end of the day what you choose is up to you, but if emotions were made to be felt, why deny yourself that after one bad encounter? The world is filled with opportunities, and throwing that away because of him seems to be a bit of a waste don't you think?"_

_She sighed in defeat, realising with some surprise that there was truth in his words. "I think it's time I let him know I know."_

_Malfoy slowly grinned at this, "What are you going to do?"_

_What was she going to do. Hermione had been going over that question for many days in her mind, recycling and going through the possible revenge strategies to inform the redhead of her knowledge, but nothing came up which would seem bad enough. "Well I could always tell his mother."_

_Malfoy did an ungraceful snort, surprising Hermione at how unlike him the sound was, before he shook his head, "A howler and a beating would be too quick."_

_Hermione hesitated, his words making a plan form in her mind. "Well there is this one thing I've been working on for a while.." Malfoy's eyes were questioning and Hermione knew she had to elaborate. "Do you remember a girl named, 'Marietta Edgecombe?" _

"—thinks it makes her better, but she just looks vain and shallow now. A stuck up-" Hermione whirled around to face the redhead, a mad glint in her eyes causing him to silence himself immediately. Harry threw a nervous glance towards the witch, but her eyes remained solely on the face of her ex boyfriend.

"Hey Pavarti." She said loudly, without breaking eye contact. The witch looked up from her work expectantly, giving Hermione the chance to continue almost without pausing. "I was planning on going to the library later to do the Defence essay. You said you wanted help right?" Pavarti nodded, confused as to why Hermione was staring at Ron but speaking to her. "I know a good spot, at the back of the library. It's quiet. Almost no one goes there _so we can get a lot done without being interrupted_." Hermione was emphasising the words strongly, not blinking or breaking eye contact with Ron, whose eyes had widened considerably at her words. "A blonde Hufflepuff girl in the year below showed me where it was." Ron flinched in shock, "It's just a thought."

"O-Okay Hermione?" Pavarti responded, seemingly desperate to end the awkward encounter that was taking place. "I'll see you there after dinner."

Hermione turned around to face the front, once more giving her attention to Professor Flitwick. Inwardly she was slightly proud to be the reason he was wearing a dumb look of shock upon his freckly face, and she knew that he'd be wondering how she'd found out… or even whether she knew at all. He'd probably think it was a strange coincidence. He was to thick to actually realise she'd known all along despite the heavy hints she'd dropped.

She could hear Harry whispering curiously to his friend, asking him what the hell that had all been about, but Ron shushed him aggressively, and proceeded to remain silent for the rest of the lesson. Maybe he had picked up on her hints after all, something seemed to have him flustered.

Hermione smirked, he was not going to enjoy what she had prepared for him.

_"Marietta? Isn't that that girl from fifth year whose face you permanently disfigured?"_

_Hermione scoffed softly, "It wasn't permanently disfigured, it was just a slight amount of acne. Besides, if she hadn't have given us up, she would have been fine."_

_"You're far less nice than us Slytherins had you pegged for, golden girl." He slumped back into the chair and pushed the fallen strands of hair from his face. "So you're going to give the Weasel an even more unfortunate face than before?"_

_"No… I'm going to give him a chance. I'll hint that I know what's happened. Hopefully he will come out and admit to it… but if he doesn't… the moment he sets foot past a certain bookshelf towards the back of the library, the spell will be triggered…Let's just say when that happens, his lady friend won't want to be kissing his face any longer."_

_Malfoy chuckled darkly, "Granger I had you all wrong. You are much more cunning than I thought."_

_"Thanks Malfoy…"_

_"I don't know if that's a compliment Granger, it's actually fairly dangerous." Hermione grinned cheekily in his direction, earning a small smile from the blonde in response._

_"I'm only dangerous if you break my heart."_

_Malfoy stared at her for a long moment, causing her cheeks to redden slightly in embarrassment. The corner of his lips quirked in amusement at her red face."Well then Granger," he said slowly, shaking his head at her reaction, "I'll have to try my hardest to avoid doing that, won't I?"_


	15. Chapter 15

**_We won't make the same mistakes as your father Draco. I need this to be done as soon as possible, the Ministry have become more suspicious of our actions. Please don't fail me._**

**_- Narcissa Malfoy_**

Draco Malfoy ripped the piece of parchment slowly between his pale fingers, watching with intensity as the words became illegible from the torn fragments. His eyes narrowed, he knew he was running out of time, which was the one thing his plan seemed to require.

He sat alone in the empty room, mindlessly stroking the head of his mother's owl. Hermione had gone to the library with the Patil girl do to homework, but Draco was not in the right mind to concentrate on something as pointless as Ancient Runes at that moment in time.

The ministry was filtering through his mind. The damn Ministry of Magic, the source of all of his family's problems. They'd been keeping a careful watch over the pureblood families since the end of the war. Many had been thrown into Azkaban over little suspicions, possible uprisings, harmless rumours really. Draco knew that his family was among the most anticipated to rise again, and that the Ministry would not rest until every Malfoy was trapped behind bars on that desolate island, having what little happiness they possessed sucked out of their bodies like dust to a vacuum.

It sickened him.

He threw the remaining fragments of his mother's letter into the fire, watching the flames lick the edges of the parchment enthusiastically, turning it quickly into nothing but small piles of ash. Draco thought his mother slightly careless for sending such a letter through the post, it was as if she didn't realise their mail may be searched at any moment by a passing ministry official. Or Hermione.

Draco shuddered to think what would happen if Hermione were to read his mother's messages. There were numbers of ways in which she could interpret them, but none of those ways would end well for Draco, or his plans. If anything, it would set him back… he'd need to reprimand and refrain his mother from sending further messages. Draco understood the intensity of their situation, he was not an idiot.

He was awoken from his thoughts by the opening of the portrait door, revealing the witch he'd been just thinking about. She stood before him, her short figure weighed down by a book bag which looked on the edge of breaking, her hair messy and face red. The girl bent over and it was then he noticed her heavy breathing. It was as if she'd been running.

"Granger?" The unasked question hung in the air between them, but she waved her hand as if to push it away, shaking her head in the process.

"Unimportant," she panted heavily, dropping the bag to the ground with a tremendous thud. "He didn't come to the library. Maybe he's learned."

She dropped down beside him on the love seat, shocking him ever so slightly with the close contact. "Or maybe he's hiding because he thinks you're out for blood."

She laughed softly, dropping her head back and closing her eyes, a smile planted upon her face. "Revenge isn't my forte."

Draco scoffed. "Oh please, who are you trying to fool Granger. So the spell's been put off a day or two. I'm sure it'll still happen."

"Of course it will still happen." Her smile had once again dropped, "I give it less than a week. I used the spell in Charms yesterday, so it will definitely work."

"If you did the charm yesterday, why have you been running? I just assumed he saw you cast something and you were trying to get away."

She grinned and shifted in her seat, turning her head to face him. Draco stiffened as he felt her face graze his shoulder, but tried to relax quickly so she would not notice. If Hermione had felt him tense she did not mention it, instead she smiled at the blonde wizard cheekily. "It wasn't Ron I was aiming to avoid…. it was Harry."

"What's Boy-Wonder done to upset you?"

She smacked his arm softly at the nickname, sick of his attitude. "_Harry_ has done nothing wrong. It's just after my little outburst in Charms, he seems to have realised that he is out of the loop on certain happenings within the school, and has been pestering me to tell him what is going on."

Malfoy raised his eyebrow expectantly, "Well have you?"

"Would I be running away from him if I had?" She leaned against him mindlessly, her head resting against his shoulder, and he stared down at her in surprise. "Harry can figure it out himself. If I tell him then he will hate Ron, but if Ron tells him he may twist the story to make me seem like the monster. Either way, one of us loses him, and I don't want that… He's not the brightest, but he will figure it out eventually. And when he does, it's his decision how he reacts."

"That sounds more like the annoyingly positive and self righteous attitude of the Gryffindor golden girl I know and hate."

"You don't hate me Malfoy." She yawned, suddenly realising how late it was.

The wizard sighed in exasperation, "I never imagined it'd be possible for me to agree with that." He glanced down at her. She had the cheeky grin on again, but it was masking a real smile. He could tell she was hoping he'd agree with her. Her eyes were closed and she was resting against him on the lounge seat, and Malfoy was having trouble believing that they were having a decent conversation and sitting within close proximity of each other. "If you'd have told me last year that we would be sitting like this discussing Potty and Weasel in mutual tones of dislike, while not wanting to hex each other, I probably would've cast an unforgivable curse on you."

"And I would've punched you in the face… again," she mumbled tiredly.

"I'm quicker now. I'd be expecting it. You'd never reach your target Granger,"

"You underestimate me Malfoy," her eyelids fluttered and Malfoy chuckled quietly. He paused for a moment, and then pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear, watching her slowly drift off to sleep.

"Trust me Granger. I don't."

Hermione awoke the next morning to find herself alone on the love seat, a dark blue comforter spread over the top of her body, and an unfamiliar pillow beneath her head. She realised with some embarrassment that she must've fallen asleep on Malfoy…which meant this must be his bedspread and pillow. He'd tucked her in. The thought of him doing something so caring was actually strange for Hermione, but not unpleasant, and she found herself smiling at the mental picture of him tucking her in.

Upon further investigation, Hermione found the dorm empty, and assumed he must have gone down to The Great Hall for breakfast. She decided she would do the same after hearing the angry noises coming from her unfed stomach.

She pushed the doors to the Great Hall open to find it buzzing with cheerful students, and saw an empty space at the Gryffindor table near Neville, which seemed to be a safe enough spot. He grinned at her as she sat down, cheerfully asking her how she'd been, since he hadn't had the chance to catch up in a while. His relationship with Luna had been flourishing and he could not stop beaming whenever Hermione brought the blonde witch up in conversation. She loved seeing him so happy. Hermione knew that Neville deserved happiness after having such a rough time growing up, and it was great to see him moving on so well after the war.

"We are spending the Christmas break with her father, he says Christmas is the perfect time to harvest the dirigible plums, and Luna is very excited to show me all the special foods that can be made from them." He gushed happily, tearing off pieces of toast and buttering them as he spoke. Hermione nodded along, happy to be a part of a cheerful conversation, when suddenly the doors to the hall exploded open.

Ron pushed through the doors, a look of thunder upon his face, his hair crackling with anger. He strode past the Slytherin and Ravenclaw tables, his eyes scanning the Gryffindor table until they landed upon his target. "**_YOU._**" He bellowed angrily, his finger stabbing the air in the direction of Hermione. He strode up to her, each step quicker than the first. Hermione stood from her chair suddenly, shocked at his outburst… until she saw his face.

He stopped in front of her, anger coursing through his veins, white hot and boiling. A hush had gone over the Hall, and in the silence Hermione heard the doors open again, and saw a black haired Ravenclaw sneak into the Hall looking disgusted and embarrassed. Hermione could guess what had happened.

It was then that the mass of students got a proper look at Ron's face. Written brightly across his face in large angry boils read the words, "**DIRTY CHEAT**_"._ The hall erupted into laughter at the unfortunate acne which now scarred the fuming and embarrassed red headed Gryffindor. He paused for a moment, allowing the laughter to fuel his anger more, before he reached out and gripped Hermione's arms tightly with his palms, squeezing her roughly. She winced but made no further obvious reactions, not wanting him to know he was hurting her.

"You fix this right now you little bitch," he hissed angrily, squeezing her arms tighter, making her tense from the pain. "You put my face back the way it was. I know this was you, I know you're the one who did this."

"I only cast the hex," She spat at him, tugging her arms, unsuccessfully trying to free herself from his painful grasp. "You're the one who triggered it. How long Ron? How long were you cheating on me… with how many different girls?"

"This isn't my fault" He seethed back, pushing his face close to hers to block the other students from their conversation, "You're the one who never wanted to get past second base. It's your fault I got bored, you're the one who wouldn't give me what I wanted."

"Was that all this ever was to you Ronald? An attempt to get in my pants? Because if that's the case, I wouldn't change your face back even if I could. I hope it stays like that forever, to warn the future girls of your infidelity." He dragged her closer to him roughly, and Hermione was wondering why none of the teachers up at the Professor's tables had noticed their little tiff going on and come to save her yet.

"Fix me." He hissed, his mouth held close to her ear, his hands forming bruises on her arms, "Fix me now."

"Release her Weasley." Hermione turned her head to see Malfoy and Harry standing side by side, both holding their wands towards Ron. His grip tightened again for a single moment, before he dropped her arms and shoved her roughly backwards. Draco dropped his wand arm and moved quickly, catching her before she hit the ground. Hermione turned around and pushed her face into his chest, and he hesitated before putting an arm around her shoulders in a comforting manner, raising the other back towards Ron. The boy stared between his long time enemy and his best friend, glaring at their wands.

"Harry, you're seriously siding with this prat?" He growled, thrusting his finger in Malfoy's direction in disgust.

Harry's jaw clenched, and he narrowed his eyes. "No, I'm siding with Hermione. Explain what your face means Ron."

"After everything we've been through you're siding with her?!" He took and angry step towards Harry, who raised his wand arm higher as a warning.

"I believe Potter asked you for an explanation Weasley," Malfoy drawled cooly.

"You shut your mouth you arrogant prick, and sod off."

"Fine," Malfoy shrugged nonchalantly, turning to face Harry, "I'll explain. This pathetic waste of oxygen over here had been cheating on Granger for months towards the end of their relationship, and when she found out, she decided to get rid of him. He has shown no remorse for what's happened however, and so Granger took it into her own hands to teach him a lesson. As you can see, this has been effective as of now."

Harry turned incredulously towards Ron, and took the wizard's seething as confirmation of Malfoy's story. "You are unbelievable Ron, how could you."

"How could I?!" He looked at his friend in shock, as if not believing his ears, "How could _I_?! Look at what she's done to my face! How am I at fault here, we aren't even dating anymore, she can't still be pissed that I'm getting with girls!"

Malfoy let go of Hermione and moved closer to Ron, invading his personal space, and standing inches from his face. He looked him dead in the eyes, an undeniably large amount of anger was radiating off of his face. It remained expressionless as always, but Hermione could tell. Malfoy squared his shoulders and hissed, "I believe Weasley," He said, accentuating each word concisely, "that the issue is not that you are getting girls currently… but that you were getting girls _whilst dating Hermione. _Now I realise you have a thick skull, and you are probably one of the stupidest wizards I've ever met, but I feel like if you manage to get a girl _like that _ to fall for you without the help of an _INCREDIBLY STRONG LOVE POTION, _you should not be going around _fucking other girls for fun_. That is probably why she is pissed, because she's realised she deserves so much better than you, you worthless piece of trash." Malfoy took one last disgusted look at the wizard in front of him before stepping back and turning to face Hermione.

"And you think you're better?" Ron asked tauntingly.

Malfoy scoffed, and turned back towards the ginger, staring at him judgementally. "I know I'm better," he growled lowly, "and just you watch Weasel, I'll prove it."


	16. Chapter 16

"Come here," he demanded softly, reaching his arm out towards her. The witch sighed and moved closer, letting him further inspect her arm. He winced, "It's not too bad."

"You don't need to lie Malfoy, I have eyes." The blonde sighed and ruffled his impeccable hair in frustration, staring at the black and blue welts covering her biceps and forearms, clear handprints forming against the pale skin. She rolled her sleeves back down and moved towards the armchair, not wanting to further increase his sour mood.

"That worthless piece of-"

"_Malfoy._" He shut up but continued to stare angrily at her covered arms, pacing back and forth within the dorm. "You realise he will be waiting for a counter move right?"

The blonde wizard paused his pacing and raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware the battle was continuing. I thought maiming his ugly mug was the end of your fight."

"His aggression made me realise that there was more to be done." Malfoy would've chuckled if he'd been in a better mood, but instead his frown deepened.

"What are you going to do Granger?"

Hermione stared at his face for a moment, wheels turning within her head as to whether or not she should suggest her idea, but his stare told her that he wouldn't allow her to remain silent. "I've been thinking."

"That's always dangerous."

"_I've been thinking" _She repeated, frowning at his sarcasm, "about what you said to Ron."

"Which time Granger?"

"Well… you told him you would prove that you're better than him, right? How exactly were you planning on doing that?"

Malfoy's face went blank, but his eyes widened slightly out of shock, "It was just an 'in the moment' statement Granger, what are you planning?"

Hermione sighed, and stood up, walking towards the wizard slowly, as if to assess his reaction to her plan before making sudden movements. "Do you remember weeks ago, when we visited Hogsmeade together?" Malfoy nodded slowly, and she continued, "You said to me before we left, "What could possibly make him angrier than seeing you and I…_together."… well_ that's what I've been thinking about."

Malfoy stared at her, making her feel slightly self-conscious for suggesting it, but she stared back defiantly, waiting for a response. "You also told me Granger, that it was the stupidest idea to pass through my gorgeously thick skull, so I don't see where this change of heart is coming from."

"I don't recall saying "Gorgeous.""

"It happened, don't act like you weren't thinking it Granger."

She sighed again, pinching the bridge of her nose, but Malfoy could see the small smile she was desperately trying to pretend was non-existent. "Well maybe it's not as stupid as I thought it was. And you're right Malfoy, nothing would make him angrier, he's already made that much obvious. I don't think it would be too hard to fake… it's not like you'd need to kiss me or anything, just hold my hand every once in a while, and come say hi during meal times? And I can sit next to you in classes we have together with Ron, you don't even need to look at me during things like Ancient Runes."

"You want me to pretend to date you, and make it believable, but you expect us to never need to kiss? Not once? My my, maybe Weasel was right, you do seem to be a bit shy when it comes to affection." She pushed him away from her in frustration, her eyes narrowing.

"_Pretend,_ the key word here is _pretend_ you insensitive prat. We can make it believable, I'm just trying to save you the trouble of having to dirty your mouth with my muggleborn lips."

"Oh please Granger," He scoffed, "I think I'm over the stage in my life where it matters to me. And if you think I have a problem with getting dirty, you've clearly never talked to any of my previous girlfriends."

She gave a small laugh at his implication, but crossed her arms defensively. "You mean basically three hundred girls in this school? I don't have the time to talk to that many."

"Insinuating that I'm a man-whore isn't going to make me want to help you out, golden girl." He sat down across from her, crossing his legs, a small smirk playing gracefully across his face.

"Please Malfoy, it's all I can think of right now that might work."

He sighed dramatically, acting as if her request was a huge burden on his life, but his lips were set in a smile. "Fine. I will fake date you Granger, but you owe me big time."

The day passed in a blur after that. Hermione could focus on nothing but her new plan, and how to make it seem as authentic as possible. Her lack of attention passed by unnoticed by her fellow Gryffindor students, finally giving the rest the chance to answer questions in class and participate while her mind was off with the fairies.

Malfoy had suggested they wait until the next day to begin, to give Ron some time to cool down before making him angrier, and Hermione had reluctantly agreed. Her reluctance had amused Draco, who had up until now, always believed that Hermione was the type of person to stop people from taking revenge rather than enact and encourage it. Weasley seemed to have messed with the wrong witch.

Draco retired early to the dorms that evening, skipping dinner. He had work to do, and needed to be alone to do it. He set his books upon one of the study desks in the common room, and grabbed a long roll of blank parchment and a quill. He stared at the page for a moment, wondering how to begin his response, before dipping the quill into the dark ink.

_**"Mother,**_

_**I will begin soon, the time is coming. Hold the ministry off for a little longer so that I can prove my worth. I will not fail you. Please do not communicate further by post, I have a private floo in my dorm room which I will use to discuss our plan further. Hope you've been well.**_

_**- Draco Malfoy"**_

He rolled the parchment up once the ink had dried, and shoved it into his cloak pocket, heading out the portrait hole and straight for the owlery. The corridors were empty, as he'd planned, since every student was currently having dinner in The Great Hall. Draco rushed through them quickly, his italian leather shoes making rapid clicks as the heel hit the stone. The light from the lanterns flickered against his skin, casting a dull shadow against the ground.

The owlery was empty also, much to Draco's relief, and he grabbed the leg of the nearest barn owl, tying the rolled parchment tightly to the disgruntled bird. Draco took it to the window, and threw it outside, earning himself an angry hoot in response, but he was already disappearing down the winding staircase and back to the castle below.

Draco wandered through the halls slower than before, not as anxious now that his note had been safely sent off. Assuming it was not interfered, he had nothing to worry about until his encounters with Hermione the next day. He was so distracted by the thought of having to be affectionate with the girl, that he didn't notice the person standing in front of him until he'd run straight into him.

"Sorry," He mumbled distractedly, wincing as he realised he'd apologised. How un-Malfoy of him, his father would be rolling in his cell.

"Malfoy." Draco looked up, and reached for his wand, quickly recognising the voice.

"Potter. Bit of a strange time for a stroll about the castle, wouldn't you say?" He sneered, noticing warily that Harry had his wand arm raised as well.

"I could say the same to you Malfoy, but actually, you're the person I was coming to find."

"Come to finish me off for your ginger friend? The great and noble Harry Potter defending the weak and pathetic as usual?" Harry scoffed and took an angry step forward.

"I'm not doing anything like that you prick. I'm not happy with Ron at the moment."

Malfoy rolled his eyes at the obvious statement the wizard had made. "How upsetting. Hogwarts' cutest couple having some trouble?"

"Can you stop being an arse for 2 minutes so I can say what I came to say before I punch you in the face?" Harry sighed angrily, and lowered his wand arm. "Hermione did not deserve what happened. She's been nothing but amazing since we made friends with her all those years ago. She's my best mate, and as my best mate, I feel it is my duty to say to you that whatever is going on between the two of you… friendship or more… If you mess around with her, I will crucio you to the edge of living, and not rest until you are locked away like your father. She can handle a lot, but after Ron, I don't think she needs another asshole."

Draco lowered his wand as well and held out his hand, shocking both of them. Harry hesitated before grabbing it and shaking it, not breaking eye contact with the blonde. "I don't cheat Potter. It's one of the only things I'm good for."

"It doesn't have to be cheating. Anything. Anything that will hurt her."

"She's going to end up hurt eventually, whether it's by me or not. You can't prevent that…" He let go of Harry's hand and stepped past him, "But as for your warning, I will try my hardest to not fuck up as badly as the last guy." With that, Malfoy walked away, leaving Harry Potter standing alone in the dimly lit corridor, feeling more uneasy than he had initially.


	17. Chapter 17

The news that Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger had been seen holding hands on their way to breakfast Wednesday morning spread through the castle like wildfire, eliciting jealous glares from the desperate witches, and disappointed stares from the hopeful wizards with whom no longer had a chance with either of the Head Students.

Hermione had awoken bright and early that morning, eager to begin their first day of 'fake-dating.' She'd spent an unusually long amount of time in front of the mirror, straightening her hair and painting her face the way Pansy had shown her to do the previous week. Her uniform was impeccable and she was happy with how she looked in the mirror, skipping gracelessly down the staircase to wait for Malfoy, who emerged moments later looking as handsome as always.

"What's the plan Granger?" She grinned at him cheekily, unable to contain her excitement which came from the thought of further upsetting her ex-boyfriend. Hermione held her hand out and stared pointedly at it, laughing as the blonde wizard groaned slightly.

"Just do it Malfoy." He sighed and grabbed her hand, fitting his fingers perfectly between her smaller ones, surprising both of them how comfortably their hands fit together. Hermione was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to hold Malfoy's hand, as Ron's had always been too large and slightly sweaty whenever she was able to get him to hold her hand. Malfoy's long fingers felt cool to the touch, and she gripped his hand lightly, pulling the reluctant boy out the portrait, ignoring the annoying giggles coming from the water nymph within the portrait. "Remember you're meant to be making this believable you prat, groaning isn't helping."

"It would be if we were in the bedroom." He smirked as the blood flushed against her cheeks, loving how easy it was to make her feel awkward. "I'm not good with affection Granger, remember? Flirting is my element… not this, so give me a break."

"It's easy, just follow my lead and you'll be fine." She squeezed his hand in what he assumed was an act of comfort, and they walked down to the Great Hall in comfortable silence, ignoring the gaudy stares coming from the other students as they passed.

On occasion, Hermione would sneak a glance at Malfoy, his face was expressionless, and his posture tense, but his hand was so relaxed in hers that it seemed odd to think he wasn't comfortable with this. As they reached the double doors, he took in a deep breath and pushed them open with his free hand, leading her inside.

A hush fell over the room as the Head Boy and Girl entered hand in hand, and Malfoy hesitated for a moment before he did something which totally shocked Hermione. He leaned close towards her and put his lips near her ear. "Giggle" he whispered. She understood what he was trying to do the moment he spoke, and a soft giggle escaped her lips. It felt so fake, but she knew it sounded authentic. He leaned back from her and stared into her eyes, pretending to ignore the hundreds of eyes staring at the two. Malfoy smiled slightly at her, brushing her hair behind her ears, before winking. "I'll see you later."

He let go of her hand and walked towards the sea of green and silver, where she watched him get interrogated almost instantly by both Pansy and Blaise as he sat down. She beamed at his show for the students, and went to sit by herself at the Gryffindor table, where the red and gold clad students were staring with open mouths and shocked faces. All but three.

Hermione could feel Harry, Ginny and Ron's gazes on her as she spooned porridge into her bowl, but pretended not to notice. Harry and Ginny deserved some sort of explanation, but she knew that if she told them it was all a ruse, they may let it slip to Ron, and that would make this whole show a complete waste of time.

She looked up towards the Slytherin table, and caught the silver eyes staring back at her. He grinned towards her and she put her head down quickly, embarrassed to be caught looking, but unable to wipe the smile off her face. It was worrying her how easily it was to act as if she fancied him.

She finished breakfast quickly, eager to get away from the table, and in turn, escape the stares which had been intensely focused on her throughout the entire meal. She excused herself from her seat and rushed out the Great Hall, closing the doors behind her with a residing thud, happy to be free from the prying eyes.

She'd made it not ten steps before a hand grasped her arm, and she gasped in surprise, turning around quickly, her wand in front off her. "Granger relax, it's me."

She breathed a sigh of relief, retracting her wand from his throat, ignoring his shocked facial expression. "Don't sneak up on me. Not after the war. I could kill you."

"The war was months ago Granger, the threats are gone. You're in school, you need to calm down."

"I don't forget Malfoy." She sighed and lowered her wand arm, stepping closer to him and leaning her head on his shoulder tiredly. "Months feel like days. I won't forget."

He gave her an awkward pat on the shoulder but said no more to upset her, instead changing the subject to why he initially came to see her. "Pansy and Blaise believed the show, and they're a tough audience to convince. It's easily working. You should've seen Weasley's face when he saw you looking at me."

Hermione smiled slightly, removing herself from his awkward embrace. "Was he mad?"

"That's a stupid question Granger," he laughed, "of course he was mad. You made an excellent actress in front of the whole school, even I almost believed you had feelings for me. I was wrong I suppose, kiss or no kiss, it seems authentic."

She remained silent at his comments, her heart beat picking up slightly at his praise, leaving her wondering what the hell was going on with her emotions. Was one morning of acting beginning to make her crumble and weaken when it came to actually having feelings again? Because she could admit to many things, but ever having feelings for a Malfoy was never meant to be on the list. She shook her head at her own thoughts, forgetting about the boy standing in front of her.

"No? Well it seemed pretty authentic to me, so you must have very high standards." He paused, and then grinned cheekily, "Actually forget that, you dated Weasley…clearly your standards are lower than expected."

"I wasn't shaking my head at what you said you arse, and I have high standards, I've already told you before that he seemed a lot nicer when I began dating him. Not everyone is such a blatant and outright jerk like you are."

"At least I'm consistent Granger, and consistency is key."

"Shut up and hold my hand Malfoy, I can hear the students coming."

He grinned again, but grabbed her hand quickly, pulling her towards him unexpectedly. Hermione squeaked in surprise at the sudden tug, falling into his solid chest and gripping hold of him to steady herself, just as a large group of students walked past. Malfoy's arms wound their way around her torso and she felt her heart beat quicken again, worried he'd be able to feel it through the embrace, but if he did he showed no indication.

"Break it up you two!" Dean Thomas shouted as he walked past, making Hermione's cheeks flush from embarrassment.

"What's the matter? Never seen a couple show affection before?" Malfoy responded lazily, without hesitation, making the crowd of students erupt into a whispering frenzy over the word, 'couple.'

Hermione pushed herself off of his chest, regretting it slightly almost as soon as she was away from him, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards their next class, surprising her by the enthusiasm he seemed to be showing over the entire act.

Hermione took her seat beside Draco and Blaise within Potions, directly behind her former Gryffindor friends, and spent the next hour giggling girlishly to anything Malfoy said that was remotely funny, and beaming with pride over the red colour she could see Ron's ears turning from behind him. Malfoy was making this too easy, and she really admired how well he was cooperating. He was making it seem as if he would actually be able to legitimately date someone without making the girl want to throw herself off the Astronomy Tower after an hour into the relationship, which greatly surprised Hermione, as she was expecting him to make this incredibly difficult for her.

"Malfoy that's not the right amount of powdered slug for this clockwise stir, you need about half a teaspoon less, otherwise it'll go grey instead of blue, see?" She adjusted the measurement and poured the ingredients in with him, and the potion turned a cerulean blue colour, he nodded a 'thanks Granger,' to her, and continued chopping the roots needed for the next addition. Blaise stared at them for a moment before speaking for the first time since the beginning of class.

"Isn't it kind of weird?" Hermione and Malfoy looked up at him in confusion and he continued, "That you two are dating now… but you still call each other by your last names?"

Hermione saw Ron raise his head slightly, apparently interested in their response to this question, and she cleared her throat awkwardly. Malfoy took one look at her blank face and sighed, knowing he'd have to save this one. "I've known her as Granger for the past seven years. If I called her Hermione it just doesn't seem right to me." Hermione's heart jolted as he said her first name, but she agreed with Malfoy, saying it didn't feel right.

"Some people have pet names," she joked quietly, "Malfoy and I have last names. It's just what we are used to. I could call him Draco if I really wanted to, but I'm so unused to it…"

Blaise shrugged nonchalantly, carrying on with his potion without further protest. Malfoy and Hermione exchanged glances when his head was down, and she tried her best to look as if she hadn't had a mild anxiety attack over the first person to question the authenticity of their blooming relationship. Malfoy gave her a small smile and his eyes were telling her to calm down, but she shook her head. "Ron" she mouthed, pointing towards the red head, who was still aptly paying attention to the group behind him. Malfoy nodded in understanding, and opened his mouth to speak again, "That being said… maybe we should try it. I've never had problems with change before, why start now?"

"Honestly?" She breathed quietly, knowing it was a part of the act but still kind of glad he wanted to use her first name.

"I called you Granger when I hated you." He replied softly, aware of Ron listening in, "I don't hate you anymore. So Hermione seems fitting."

Hermione beamed at his words, "Okay Draco. I think that seems fair."

Blaise groaned from beside them, "I regret bringing it up, can you lovebirds shut up please, I'm trying to concentrate."

The pair chuckled quietly at the Italian wizard's outburst, and got back to working on their potion, but Hermione seemed to be unable to get rid of the smile that seemed to be permanently plastered to her face. Malfoy's left hand lay on the table, unneeded for the time being, and she couldn't help but reach out and grab it.

He stared in shock for a moment at the unnecessary affection she was showing, aware that the Gryffindor boy couldn't actually see the actions they were doing from the position he was sitting. This left Malfoy to wonder… was it for the act? Or was this her actually wanting to hold his hand?

He squeezed her hand in response, and his lips quirked into a smile at the pure happiness radiating off the young witches face. Her energy was contagious, and he found it hard not to be happy in that point in time.

Malfoy hated to admit it… but maybe this plan wasn't as bad of an idea as he first thought.


	18. Chapter 18

**Thanks for all the reviews guys, and you've been brilliant with patience, I've actually been really really sick over the past week, hence the no updating, but I'll try and get a few chapters out quickly to make up for it xx**

"It's obvious isn't it?" The wizard snarled in front of his sister and friend, who were staring up at him with a mixture of disgust and shock. "It's a ruddy scam!"

"I don't think it is Ron," Harry replied quietly, ruffling his already messy locks tiredly. "Honestly I think something's been going on for a while, she seems to be happy."

"Happy!?" He roared, "Happy? With Malfoy!? That's not possible, all the bloody witch is trying to do is piss me off and I know it!"

"Clearly it's working," his sister mumbled to the black haired wizard, who snorted in amusement, earning a glare from the angry boy pacing in front of them.

"I'm going to get to the bottom of this. I'm going to catch them at their own sodding game and when I out them in front of the whole school for being petty fakes …. then we will see who the "brightest witch of our generation" really is." He sank heavily into the armchair, red sparks flying out the tip of his wand. Ronald Weasley had grown up feeling forced all of his life to live in the shadow of his five brothers, never once feeling worthy enough because anything he'd done had been done before. He was tired of never having things work in his favour and this was the fuel he needed to start making a plan.

Ginny sighed and stood up suddenly, drawing the attention of the two boys towards herself. "I think you're being a downright prat Ron. There's nothing "going on," I don't blame her for wanting to get over you quickly after what you did, so leave her alone and just let Hermione be happy for once, otherwise you can bet your arse I'll be writing to mum about your actions over the past few months."

"Gin look I'm not too sure," Harry piped in hesitantly, cowering under the glare she directed towards him "I spoke to Malfoy a while ago…"

"You _spoke_ to the prat? Are you a part of his bloody fan club now as well?! Am I the only one who remembers how he's treated us over the past few years?" Ron hissed, a mixture of disbelief and anger thickly coating his tone of words.

"I spoke to him to tell him not to mess Hermione about." Harry said, glaring at the interruption. Ron's cheeks began to turn a slight pink colour at the mention of 'messing her around,' but he said nothing in response. "I don't think it's a trick… I mean I'm not the best when it comes to realising people's affections…" Ginny snorted and Harry turned his glare towards the young witch, "_but_ Hermione clearly likes him. So if this is a game… it's only a game for him."

"Malfoy doesn't date, and Merlin himself couldn't convince someone from that family to date a muggleborn, let alone help her out and flirt in front of the entire school for her _revenge_. His family would kill him if they found out. So unless there's an ulterior motive… I don't see why he'd bother going through the pain if it weren't going to benefit him unless he actually liked her. I mean we are talking about possible unforgivable curses being used on him just so he can make Hermione feel like she's winning the break up. Malfoy wouldn't be that dense."

Harry raised his eyebrows towards Ron, Ginny had a point. It just didn't add up for him to agree to fake dating her.

"It's obvious isn't it?" Ron said in exasperation, "She asks him to help her, and he says yes…and it seems all nice and innocent… but then really he's just using her to get to Harry! It's another one of his Death Eater schemes!"

Harry sighed and rubbed his eyes, tired of his best mate's jealous, nutty ravings. "The Death Eaters are over Ron. Voldemort has been defeated, it's over. The ministry have their eye on this type of stuff, it's not happening inside Hogwarts. Malfoy doesn't need to use Hermione to get to me anyway, if he wanted to kill me, he could have while we were alone in the corridor the other night."

"Maybe he was afraid of being caught! He always was a spineless little-"

"Ron you are being ridiculous. Get your head out of your arse for a moment and try to think clearly. Malfoy has no incentive to date Hermione other than feelings. They clearly like each other, Hermione grins and giggles like a schoolgirl when he's around, it's almost sickening."

Ron's eyes narrowed dangerously towards his sister, but he spoke no further, realising that the two were no longer supporting his decisions. This meant he would need to take action into his own hands.

"Just wait a few days and see how it goes. If they keep it up then we can assume they are happy together. If they don't, we'll know that it was a lie and Malfoy was just using her," Ginny reasoned, wincing at the harsh way her words came out.

Ron refused to believe that Malfoy would ever have a chance with Hermione, always laughing in his face when he implied the possibilities, and now that the dream had become a reality, Ron needed a way to get back on top and ruin Malfoy. "By the time you accept he's using her it'll be too late." Ron hissed at them angrily, hopping to his feet. "Just wait, those Death Eaters will be at Harry's throat in no time once the little bitch spills all his secrets in exchange for a few compliments and a week of hand holding."

The ginger wizard planned to follow the couple at all possible moments and just pray for a slip up, a mental lapse or a slip of the tongue which would tell him what he wanted to hear.

His mind whirred as plan after plan went through his head, ranging from injuries to arguments which he could set up, small stones to break down and leave crumbled in his path. If he set it up just right maybe he'd be able to take out the relationship altogether and send them back to the hex-casting, fighting pair of students that the school had grown accustomed to over the past seven years.

Ron grinned wickedly, staring into the distance. They thought they'd got the better of him… but they were wrong. He stood quickly, leaving the common room without a goodbye to the other two Gryffindors perching worriedly in the squashy armchairs.


	19. Chapter 19

"Can you maybe not?" Blaise sighed in disgust, watching the two Head Students stare at each other from across the table. He'd been suffering through the past hour watching Hermione glance at Draco while he wasn't looking, and then quickly dart her eyes away when he glanced up, a flood of crimson tainting her pale cheeks. The blonde boy was no better. "This is sickening."

"Don't be jealous Zambini." Draco drawled back lazily, winking at Hermione in unison, causing her face to blush brighter. He wasn't sure how she was doing it, but it was incredibly convincing.

"Jealous? Please. I'm not the type to go and tie myself down to one person. I didn't think you were either Malfoy, but clearly I was mistaken."

Hermione laughed at his bitter tone, and he stared at her curiously, trying to work out what had hooked Draco. Hermione was a nice girl, everyone knew it, and Blaise knew that Draco was never truly fond of nice girls. The sudden change made him worry for Hermione's sake. "It's not my fault," Draco replied, a smirk placed on his pale face, "She couldn't resist my charms, and when a woman is practically throwing herself at me, who am I to deny her the pleasure of my company?"

Hermione snorted in annoyance, "You're so full of it. Pretty sure you're the one who came on to me."

"Completely untrue Grang-Hermione." He replied smoothly, "I do recall you purposefully falling into my arms the first day of school in an attempt to get my attention."

"Oh please," She scoffed back playfully, "If your fat body weren't in my way, I wouldn't have bumped into you and fallen." Malfoy grinned, raising his eyebrows in response.

"Fat? Excuse you, you cheeky witch, it's all muscle… and you know it." Hermione laughed in response and pushed his shoulder playfully, ignoring the eye roll Blaise was giving the both of them. Despite his frustrating nature and sarcastic replies, she couldn't help but find the wizard slightly charming.

In the far corner of the room, Ronald Weasley sat, aptly paying attention to the frustrating couple a few metres behind him. He knew that anyone who looked at him could tell that he was in a sour mood, his knuckles were clenched tightly against the tabletop, his quill nearly snapping in half from the death-like grip he had on it. He knew his anger was obvious, but he was far to engrossed in listening to the couple to care. He needed a word, phrase, or anything, any tiny slip up to show that she was not as interested in the blonde as the entire school thought she was.

His ears perked up at Malfoy's slip up of the name, but he had nothing that would prove that was anything other than them getting used to the change. "You cheeky witch," he whispered ferociously, imitating Malfoy in a petty, childlike voice. "Shut your mouth you stupid git."

Harry's head lifted slightly, acknowledging the comments coming from his best mate, but he chose to ignore them, giving the red head a roll of his eyes in annoyance. Ron tensed, watching the clock tick away the minutes, desperate to escape the over bearing essence of the couple.

"What do you have next Draco?" He heard Hermione ask from across the room.

"Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws."

"Do you want me to walk you over? I have a study period…" Ron watched Hermione look hopefully towards the prat, but he shook his head slowly.

"No it's okay, I've got Blaise. I know you want to head off to the library… with all the time you've been wasting with me, you haven't had time to finish the Potions essay," He winked at her and she grinned, knowing this comment would push Ron over the edge. The wizard had always complained about her lack of time spent with him due to her obsession with finishing homework days before it was due. "But you can meet me afterwards and we'll go to lunch?"

She beamed at him and agreed. Ron felt sick. The class passed by quickly after that, the couple downplayed the affection as the serious work began, both too focused on their grades to be bothered with the act, but Ron's mind was elsewhere. _"At the library.. meet me afterwards." _His face slowly broke out into a grin. Maybe this was the ticket he needed.

The moment the class broke up, Ron sped from his seat towards the kitchens, pushing past fellow students and receiving angry yells as books fell from their arms and to the floor, but the wizard did not care. His eyes scanned the walls along the corridor, somewhere…somewhere there was a portrait waiting to be found. He grinned wickedly as a painting opened up mere metres away from where he stood after a few moments, and a chubby black haired Hufflepuff waddled through the portrait hole. "Oi! Hold it open!"

Ron sprinted towards it, startling the younger student, who did as he was asked without question, and Ron pushed past him impatiently, entering the Hufflepuff common room feeling viciously successful at the ease in which it was to break in. His eyes scanned the room, landing on a skinny looking blonde, and the grin widened. His day was going to plan.

"Ariella," he called out, noticing her jump slightly in shock, clearly she'd been too focused on the homework spread out in front of her to notice another person was in the room. "I need your help."

The girl smiled at him, rows of perfectly straight, white teeth beaming from her cherry lips, and he couldn't help but stare distractedly for a moment at the sheer beauty of the girl. "Yes love?" She purred happily, making Ron cringe. She was a beauty, but her overly attached and needy personality was a deal breaker for Ron, she was all beauty and no brains... She was no Hermione, but she was fun when he needed her to be.

The boy grinned again, his eyes darkening at the thought of what he had planned. He sat beside her and grabbed her hand, noticing her eager blush at his contact. This was too easy.

"I've got a little something that needs taking care of… and something tells me you'd have fun doing it…"


	20. Chapter 20

Draco Malfoy paced for a few moments in front of the library doors, his hesitation making him wonder just what he was doing there in the first place. _Getting Hermione_, his conscience whispered to him. His lips formed a frown and he smoothed his hair down, fidgeting as he moved.

This wasn't right. He had no idea what he was doing. Not just in that moment, but in general. The guilt had been plaguing him for a while, he was beginning to think it would consume him entirely before he had the chance to break under the pressure.

_She can't find out. It'll ruin everything you've worked for._

"Shut up," he hissed in frustration, wishing desperately to quieten the snide thoughts sifting through his busy mind.

"Were you talking to me?"

Malfoy's head snapped up in surprise, and slight embarrassment at the knowledge that he'd been caught talking to himself in the corridor, completely unaware that there was another person there. In front of him stood a tall, beautiful blonde with a glistening smile shining on her sculpted face. Malfoy knew, had the situation been different… had he been his younger self… that this was the type of girl he would easily seduce. He was not his younger self however, so instead he raised his eyebrow at the familiar looking blonde girl, and shook his head in response, wishing desperately for her to leave him alone to his brooding before he met with Hermione.

"Oh, sorry… I just figured, yknow, since there was no one else around…" She took a step closer to him and Malfoy watched warily as she glanced at him through her thick eyelashes, a smouldering glance which would make any normal boy stunned. Malfoy stepped back, feeling his back press up against the cool stone wall, but the blonde did not stop. She moved closer and closer, and within seconds she was inches from his face.

"I'm meeting someone, do you mind?" He drawled, hoping she would hear his uninterested tone and take the hint, but the blonde merely giggled.

"I'm someone."

"Not who I want." He spoke through a clenched jaw, refusing to look into her eyes. The girl moved her face closer towards his and he shoved her roughly away. "What do you think you're playing at you crazy bint, shove off!"

"Don't play hard to get Malfoy," she giggled, determinedly moving closer once more.

Suddenly her lips were on his and Malfoy jerked his head back aggressively, trying to get her off him. The moment his head moved backwards, his skull cracked back against the stone wall, stunning him slightly from the pain. "Fuck!" He moaned, pain shooting through his skull.

The girl moved back, "Oh Draco," she sighed, smiling slightly. "This was fun, I'll have to try again sometime. Maybe when you're in a better mood." She winked and strutted away, leaving Malfoy standing in the corridor with a sore head, wondering what in the hell just happened.

A movement in the corner of his eye distracted his thoughts from trying to figure out why he'd just been sexually attacked, as he watched a brunette step through the now opened library doors.

Hermione had seen everything.

"What is going on?" She whispered in shock. Malfoy's face drained of what little colour it possessed as he saw her standing there staring at him. He hadn't done anything wrong technically, he hadn't kissed her back, he hadn't done anything… but he knew what she would've seen. He knew how she would have taken it. He was in trouble.

"Hermione," He whispered frantically, reaching his arm out towards her. She jerked away violently, her wide eyes glazing over with tears.

"What is going on?!" She yelled, more violently this time, backing further away from him in terrified disgust.

"Calm down, Hermione, please it's not what it looks like!"

"It's _not what it looks like_?" She shrieked, "Are you kidding me?! What the absolute hell Malfoy! Is that it? Has this just been a huge joke to you?" She stepped away again, a tear falling down her cheek, and she brushed it away angrily. "Let's trick Hermione! Let's play with Hermione's emotions and insecurities and watch her completely fucking break down! That'd be hilarious!"

"_No_" He groaned, feeling completely panicked as she stared down at him as if he were vile. He could feel himself losing her trust, he could feel himself losing everything he'd been building towards for the past month. "No No, Merlin, No, that's not what's happening." He could see his mother in the back of his mind, yelling at him to fix this before it ruined their plan, but he could not help but stare, lost for words, at the witch in front of him. For once he wasn't thinking about his mission, he was too concerned with the amount of hatred he could see radiating off her face as she stared at him. He was too concerned with how much that bothered him.

"Screw you!" Hermione turned and ran, ignoring his desperate pleas following her down the corridor. She ran and she ran, pushing past curious students and letting the thoughts of what lay behind her carry her legs forward. She could not stand the thought of seeing him again. How dare he. After everything. _Everything_ that had happened.

Hermione felt a sob building up in her chest, and her heart was weighing down inside her rib cage, beating slowly despite her run. It hurt. Merlin, _it hurt_ so badly. She had to go over and rethink every moment she'd ever shared with him, every laugh, every conversation… Had this all just been to hurt her further? She'd told him everything about what Ron had done. He'd watched her cry over the things the Gryffindor wizard had done to her. She thought he was there for her. For some strange, twisted reason, she thought he had suddenly flipped a switch and wanted to help her.

She had obviously been wrong.

What had been real? At what point was he planning on breaking the news that he was only using her for his own sick enjoyment? And then here she was, wondering why seeing him kiss another girl, seeing him moan the word "_Fuckk_" as the same blonde who had ruined her last relationship came back for more, could possibly upset her so much. It wasn't as if she'd had feelings for him. Did she?

Hermione pulled her hair, as if to rip it from her skull, the sobs bursting from her as she thought over it. She hated it, she wanted to rip her brain out of her sodding head and step on it, just to get him out of her thoughts, because he did not deserve to be there.

She thought no one would hurt her worse than Ron, but she'd been wrong.

**(I'm so sorry, please don't hate me... x)**


	21. Chapter 21

_"You told me you would not fail me Draco."_

_Draco Malfoy stared up at his mother from the lounge, a look of clear chagrin on her pale face. He flinched and turned away, unsure of how to respond. "It was not my fault."_

_"It never seems to be your fault Draco," Narcissa responded in cold frustration, "And yet here we are, no closer to our goals. The ministry are breathing down our necks, and you were given one simple instruction to turn this around… and once again you were unable to fulfil it."_

_"I wasn't unable!" He growled, before checking his tone in the presence of his mother. "I simply needed more time. It's not as if it's an easy task Mother."_

_"You have gone one step forward and three steps backwards Draco, frankly I'm disappointed."_

_He flinched at her comment but pushed on, "Gaining her trust was difficult enough, I was just getting ready to begin the plan.. and then there was a set-back."_

_An audible sigh came from the regal woman, who paced with a graceful dignity in front of the flames within her Manor's living quarters. "We don't have time for set-back's Draco. You know the instructions. Fix this before it's too late."_

_"I shall try my best Mother." He watched his mother pause her footsteps, and she turned to look at him. A calculating stare, he knew she was assessing his ability to complete this mission. He would not fail his family once more, this he knew for sure, but gaining his parent's trust back in regards to his worth was more difficult than he'd thought it would be, after his treachery to their cause over the past two years._

_Draco had spent hours after the war, sitting with his mother in their private lounge discussing his reasons for not killing his headmaster in sixth year, the reason for him refusing to identify Harry Potter when he was first brought to the manor, his shock and horror at having to watch Hermione Granger writhe in pain on their manor's floor while his aunt had her fun, his inability to kill the Boy Who Lived in the room of requirement, and then his hesitation at joining the Death Eaters when his dead body was shown off to the crowd of miserable onlookers. His mother knew how hard it was for him to accept the side he was meant to be on, and she was well aware that he only stayed to defend her._

_His loyalty was ruining his life, and had Narcissa Malfoy been raised differently, she would have long ago told Draco to follow his heart and leave her behind to fend for herself. She did not want to ruin his life, she loved her son as dearly as any mother could, but she knew she was not meant to show it. Lucius had always reminded her that wives were meant to be seen and not heard. To attend to his needs, and raise the children, but not put their foot out of place in regards to emotions and opinions, and this upbringing had been moulded into her mind enough for it to take full effect on her raising of Draco._

_She knew that what she was asking of him was too much. She also knew that he would struggle, but it was the only thing that would save their family name._

_"And Draco," she added after a second thought. Her son raised a quizzical eyebrow at her change in tone, before she continued. "You need to continue practicing Occlumency. If I'm able to invade your dreaming mind as easily as I have tonight, then the ministry will be able to as well. So don't get distracted, don't lose your head."_

_Draco nodded, and she stepped towards him to give him a hug. "I shall see you soon, my dragon."_

A crack of thunder rolled in the distance, waking Draco suddenly. He sat up straight in his bed, his heart pounding in his chest over the dream he'd just had. He hadn't expected his mother to show up so abruptly, and the invasion of his mind left him feeling slightly violated.

A lightning strike lit up the room, casting light through his open window, and Draco shuddered at the cold burst of rain leaking through. He got up to close the window, noticing the time, deciding he may as well head down for breakfast. It had been days since he'd seen the Head Girl. He'd been crawling around the dorms, jumping at the slightest noise, hoping to avoid any confrontation until he could sort out a way to explain the situation without her crying again. He couldn't stand to see her cry.

She had not made an appearance however. He saw her during class times, she'd sit next to Pavarti and keep her head down, not acknowledging the questions being asked by the professors, choosing instead to sit silently and wait until the class finished. She was the last in the classroom and the first to leave. Draco did not see her in The Great Hall during meal times. He assumed she went to the kitchens to avoid the pointed stares from both himself and the Weasel, but he couldn't be sure. He didn't know what he should say to her. Everything seemed so cliche, "It's not what it looks like, I wasn't doing anything, _she _came on to _me," blah blah blah. _

He sighed in frustration and pushed his hair back, flattening it against his head. He had not been approached by the blonde again, in fact, she'd walked straight past him in the corridor and not even noticed him, and he was incredibly confused as to why she'd had so much attention for him for 3 minutes, and then just lost it straight afterwards.

In fact… it was rather suspicious.

Draco left the dorm rooms, winking at the giggling portrait as he did so. She absolutely adored him, and he had no problem with that. It was almost a reminder of how people saw him in his younger years… before the Death Eater reputation came around to haunt him.

As he wandered the seemingly abandoned hallways, he heard voices emerge from an empty Ancient Runes classroom to his left. He would have ignored them and moved on, had he not heard his name mentioned by a girl. Malfoy pressed his back up against the wall, hiding himself from sight, and listened.

"-don't know what he did, but he's obviously done something. She was so happy when Malfoy was around, and now she won't talk to anyone."

"I know Gin," Malfoy's eyebrows raised in surprise, realising it must be the youngest Weasley whose voice he'd heard. "She hasn't been showing up for meals either. It's been days. She doesn't even speak in class anymore. She'd miserable."

"Ron said he was going to do something Harry," Ah. So it was a couples gossip session that Draco had wandered in on, he thought in bitter amusement, "He stormed out after vowing to ruin it for them, and obviously something has happened. We need to tell Hermione, she needs to know whose fault it is."

"It won't just be Ron though, he said he would make Malfoy do something. So whatever Hermione saw or heard came straight from Malfoy. She won't believe us, in her mind, Malfoy's the one who's screwed this up Gin."

He heard a feminine sigh come from within the classroom, and something hit the wall with a loud thunk, as if she'd thrown a heavy object in anger over the situation. "He's such an immature little git, he couldn't let her be happy just this once."

"He doesn't think he's in the wrong love, he still thinks Malfoy is using her… seeing her be happy without him is probably hurting his ego a fair bit, but the thought of Malfoy using her probably validates whatever horrible thing he'd done, in his mind at least."

"It's not right Harry."

"I didn't say it was. I hate Malfoy, I still think he's a sodding git, but Hermione was happy. I'd give anything for her to be happy again."

"I'm going to talk to Ron." A creak came from near the door and Draco's heartbeat picked up in panic, realising they'd leave the room soon. He came out from his hiding space and ran down the corridor towards The Great Hall, his mind filled with the new information he'd heard.

Of course, it made so much sense. He knew the blonde had seemed familiar. She was the same slag he'd seen giggling in the library, dragging the cheater out by the hand and whispering things in his ear as they left. He smacked his head with his hand. Hermione had seen him being kissed by the same girl her ex-boyfriend had cheated on her with. The situation got worse as the realisation hit him.

Weasley must have put her up to it. Malfoy slumped down on the bench with a scowl, shovelling waffles onto his plate and ignoring the questioning stares from the few other students sitting nearby. The damn Weasel had put her up to it. That explained her lack of interest anytime she'd seen him after the harassment outside the library. Malfoy gritted his teeth, the red-head knew how to play the game well, but he was not one to go down easily. He was more determined than ever to fix things with Hermione now that he knew the source of their problems had been the jealous Gryffindor wizard.

He would hunt her down after class that afternoon. He would force her to talk to him, to listen to him. He would make sure she knew the truth, because there was no way in god damn hell that he was going to let that prat win.

He was going to get her back.


	22. Chapter 22

Hermione sat at the front of the class, her eyes cast downwards, ignoring whatever instructions Slughorn had been giving them. Her eyes were ridiculously bloodshot, her hair was tangled and her face was pale and tired. She hadn't slept a wink in the past 48 hours. It seemed that her poisoned reality had been having an affect on her dreams, and it made her less than willing to slip into unconsciousness lately.

The war. She'd not thought about the war for the past month, which was a long lasting relief for her. Her mind had been distracted, but now she felt nothing but anxious over the dark thoughts she'd been having. More often than not in the past few days, she'd wake up in tears, the memory of death fresh in her mind, the bodies of her loved ones piled up, one on top of the other, forming overgrown piles of death. Her heart broke each time she slept, she was constantly watching the castle, her home, burn to the ground, and be crushed by the evil spirits under Voldemort's control. Her parents… _Her parents_ wandering around without the knowledge that they even had a daughter.

That was what hurt the most. The night after she'd seen Malfoy's lips interlocked with the Hufflepuff's, Hermione had dreamt of her parents. She'd run into their arms, tears of happiness cascading down her face and she'd yelled their names. She clutched onto them so tightly that she started to lose circulation but she didn't care.

And her parents had looked at her in shock, and pushed her away, no sign of recognition in their eyes. "_Who are you?"_

Who are you. Hermione's heart had clenched and she awoke feeling empty. From that point on it had been night terrors visiting her every night, and she'd wake up and go through her day looking like hell, but feeling nothing but uninterested and empty. Her enthusiasm for life had fizzled out after everything she'd been through in the past year, and Ron and Malfoy were the push she needed to be sent over the edge.

The class ended and Hermione packed her things quickly and quietly, determined once more, to escape before anyone in particular could try to speak to her. She rushed out of the room, the doors banging behind her as she left.

The Gryffindor witch rushed down the corridor, determined to get to the kitchens to get a bite to eat before anyone would see her and realise where she'd been disappearing to, but an arm reached out and grabbed her, startling her so badly that she dropped the books she was holding.

"I don't want to talk to you Malfoy," she spoke quietly, reaching down to grab the books off the ground without paying attention to the boy behind her.

"It's your lucky day then isn't it, because the prat's not here." Her heart stopped and she turned slowly to find herself standing in an empty corridor with Ronald Weasley, who was staring down at her in what looked like triumph.

"Well I don't want to talk to you either really, so it's not a very lucky day after all," she said in a stronger voice, making him scoff in what could almost be amusement.

"You need to get over it Granger," he replied coolly, "it's been ages."

She stared at him in stunned silence, wondering how he could possibly be so insensitive. "I always did say you had the emotional range of a teaspoon," she hissed, "I didn't realise how serious that was."

"Oh please, don't act like I never showed you love."

"You showed me love Ronald, along with about four other women at the same time." He glared at her and grabbed her wrist tightly, anger coursing through his veins.

"I treated you well, you didn't give me what I wanted. This is your fault as much as it is mine, so don't stand there and act all innocent Granger."

She opened her mouth at his accusation, shocked that he could possibly try to blame her when he was completely at fault. "I saw you with her." She whispered slowly, accentuating every word, "My heart sunk to the bottom of my chest, my head spun in circles. My legs shook and I could barely stand." He twitched awkwardly but she carried on, her memory of that evening fresh, as if it had just happened, "My eyes watered and dared me to cry, my hands clenched empty air, my lungs fighting for each breath. I think my heart stopped for a few seconds," she stared at him, glad to see he was growing uncomfortable with each word she spoke. "It's a miracle it started beating again, honestly. Seeing the one you thought you loved, love someone else? It has an effect which can stop any heart."

He dropped his grip on her arms and backed away, a frown placed on his face. "I feel all of this," She continued mercilessly, finally getting the chance to express her emotions in private with him, "all of this _pain_ and I have to wonder whether you ever cared about me truly. Or were you just spinning stories for me, taking advantage of my trusting nature and loving heart, and watching me fall for you to fill you with some satisfaction and give your ego a little boost? I don't know why you would bother to cheat on me. Why not just dump me, and save me the pain?"

She sighed at his silence, "I'll tell you why. Because you craved the attention you got from me, after all those years of being completely overshadowed by your family.. by Harry… finally you had someone who was completely devoted to you. But I wouldn't give you everything you wanted, would I? So you go behind my back, you sleep with these girls and you love it. _You thrive off of it_. You love the thrill of getting away with it! Then you come back to me, and I stroke your hair, and rub your back and look lovingly into your colourless eyes, and I tell you that despite your flaws, you are flawless to me. You never loved me, you just loved the attention I gave you, and now that I realise this, I can't help but feel stupid for letting you affect me for so long."

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but she wouldn't allow him the satisfaction. "I'm over you Ron. I've been over you for awhile. You cheated on me. I'm worth so much more than that, and you can go fuck yourself if you think differently. So turn around and walk away before I make that scarring on your face a lot worse than it already is."

She looked at him for a moment longer, and once she realised he was not planning on leaving, she huffed and she continued on her way to the kitchen, refusing to look back at him, and feeling a huge sense of pride at how she handled herself.

She tickled the pear painting and watched as it swung open to reveal a large room, filled to each corner with the little house-elves, who were distractedly preparing the feast for the night ahead. Hermione beamed as they took notice of her and excitedly came over with food. She still did not believe what they were doing was right, but the knowledge that they'd been offered pay and leave set her heart a little more at ease with their situations. Their kindness also, was another reason she did not try to force S.P.E.W. upon them, leaving the topic of elvish welfare out of their short conversations in order to make sure she'd be fed.

"Missus Hermione!" A little elf squeaked excitedly, "How are we today missus?"

"I'm doing okay Remmy, no better or worse than any other day. Do you have any food for me?" She asked the elf, smiling in appreciation at the time taken out to speak to her.

"Of course we do missus! We were expecting you!" He came over carrying platters of food, and Hermione felt more at ease than she had all day, happy to finally escape Ron, and hoping that this may be the end of his tirade against her. "Missus there's a man at the door asking for you, but Remmy told the sir you wished not to be disturbed."

Her smile dropped, anger coursing through her veins at Ron's incessant need to argue and put her down. "Mr Malfoy says you needs to speak with him though missus Hermione."

She dropped her food as her head snapped towards the door, and sure enough there he was.

Tall, blonde and handsome, standing in the doorway, wearing a desperate look upon his flawless face. "Hermione," he called out, and she flinched at the sound of his voice, "We need to talk."


	23. Chapter 23

_"Hermione," he called out, and she flinched at the sound of his voice, "We need to talk."_

"I've already had one unwanted chat today Malfoy, can you at least give me a little time to relax before I have my second?"

He frowned in confusion, but chose to ignore the comment, and instead push on with his reasons for hunting her down. "I need to explain what you saw last week."

"I think it's fairly obvious what I saw Malfoy, I don't need you to try pull the old, "_It's not you, it's me," _gag because I'm not very interested. I don't need your help anymore Malfoy, and you've made it abundantly clear that you aren't interested in providing it…" She turned away from him, unwilling to admit how much it hurt to see him standing there so casually, as if everything was okay. She knew he probably thought she wasn't allowed to be upset… and truth be told she wasn't. They weren't actually dating, and technically he'd done nothing wrong, so why in the hell was she so upset about it? "So you can leave and we can go back to hating each other, like you keep saying you wanted…. except for in the classrooms, where we have to be civil purely to appease McGonagall."

Malfoy hissed in frustration at the girl's inability to listen to him speak. "You don't want me to go back to hating you, as much as I don't want you to go back to hating me."

She laughed, despite finding nothing funny about the situation they were in. "It's not about what I want Malfoy, it's about what makes sense. We can't be friends. It's not right."

"I don't want to be friends Hermione," he watched her flinch as he said this, obviously taking it the wrong way.

"I see, I didn't realise I was as bad as you seem to think Malfoy, but I'll remember that next time we are alone in the common room, so I don't have to burden you with my presence."

"Can you stop calling me by my last name?" He asked annoyed, realising the conversation was heading in the opposite direction to where he intended, "We are on a first name basis, remember?"

"That was when we liked each other." She said stonily, as if she were looking to hurt his feelings, "Before I saw you kissing some other girl when we were meant to be convincing the school you were dating me."

"I pushed her off me, you stubborn witch." He hissed, "And now I'm hearing from Red and Potter this morning that your git of an ex-boyfriend set me up with the intention of breaking us up. Well it looks like it worked didn't it?"

"You can't break something that never existed Malfoy."

The boy groaned in frustration, pinching the bridge of his nose angrily and tugging on his blonde locks, as if to rip the hair straight from his skull. She was driving him insane.

"I was set up Granger! He told that blonde slag to hook up with me, he knew I'd be going to get you from the library, all that he had to do was time it perfectly and you'd walk out to see her all over me! He _knew_ Granger! I've told you cheating isn't my thing! I wouldn't do that, you saw how angry it made me. You knew from the beginning this relationship wasn't real, but that doesn't mean I feel nothing!"

She stared blankly at him, her cheeks slightly flushed from the argument, but she didn't know how to respond. "You feel something?"

He sighed tiredly, but didn't back down. "I do Granger. Contrary to popular belief, I am not as heartless as you seem to think. I feel something. The fake relationship got me thinking. And I understand, I understand why people hold hands. I always thought it was about ownership, saying, "This is mine." But it's not. It's about touch, it's about talking without words, it's about "I want you with me," and "Don't leave me alone," and lately all I can think about is what it would be like to hold your hand."

Hermione's face flushed brighter, but he was not allowing there to be silence. "And it's driving me crazy. I'm not used to this stupid feeling in my sodding chest whenever you're around. I hate it, but it's fantastic at the same time. I'm not good at this Granger, I'm not used to actually feeling something for another person but you've got me. Weasley set me up. I pushed her away Granger. I couldn't kiss her, I wouldn't do it."

"He set you up.." Draco nodded firmly, his heart beating quickly with anticipation as he watched her think it over. "You didn't kiss her back.."

"Of course I didn't you silly girl." He whispered slowly, gauging her reactions.

"You like me?" He laughed at her hopeful confusion, and he strode towards her, grabbing her face in his hands and pushing his mouth onto hers, catching her by surprise at the act of passion. Her eyes closed quickly, as he kissed her deeply, and she couldn't help but drop any of the previous animosity she'd been feeling towards the wizard.

He broke away after a moment, leaning his face against hers, their noses making contact, her lips centimetres from his. He smiled at the blush on her cheeks, and could feel her heart beating wildly against his chest as he held her close to him. "You're meant to be 'The Brightest Witch of Her Age' yet you couldn't figure that out? Merlin help us. You like me back I'm assuming? This charm's pretty hard to resist."

She grinned cheekily and kissed him again, distracting him momentarily from the sassy comments he was planning on making, before she pulled away with a smirk, "If you're lucky, maybe."


	24. Chapter 24

"Are you seeing this?" Ron gaped, directing his question towards the uninterested blonde girl leaning against the wall beside him. He stood 50 metres from the door to the potions classroom with Ariella, staring intently at the nervous glances Hermione was throwing towards the Slytherin git when she thought the boy wasn't looking. Ron's eyes zeroed in on their intertwined hands, and his blood boiled to see them getting along so perfectly after a week of tense silence. "You told me you kissed him Ariella! You said she saw you do it!"

"She did Ron, I wasn't lying. She saw me and she was shocked and I thought the girl was gunna cry but she didn't."

"Then why," Ron grunted between clenched teeth, "Is she holding his hand and looking at him like the sun shines out of his sodding arse?"

The Hufflepuff sighed and pushed herself off the wall, growing bored of his questions. "I don't know. Maybe she realised he didn't kiss me back."

"He what?"

"Yeah," she sighed, flicking her blonde curls between her fingers distractedly, "He told me he was waiting for Granger, and when I tried to kiss him he pushed me away. He wasn't interested at all. He clearly likes her."

Ron's jaw dropped again, his eyes narrowing towards the pair waiting to enter the classroom. "He can't possibly like her."

"I know right? I mean…what's to like?" Ariella giggled and grabbed Ron's tie, pulling him against her. "What's with all the questions Ron? I thought you weren't interested in her… you're with me now, remember?" Ron pushed her away and grunted a yes in response, but his lack of interest was not enough to keep the girl happy. She took one last look at him and scoffed, sauntering off towards her next class and leaving the brooding wizard to sulk in his corner.

"Ron." The boy's head swung around so rapidly that he heard his neck crack. Standing behind him was Harry Potter, looking incredibly unimpressed with the red head. "Was what I heard true?"

"How long have you been standing there mate?" Ron asked, his heartbeat picking up slightly from nerves.

"Long enough." Harry moved closer, staring coldly towards his best friend, as if not recognising the boy who stood before him. "You cheated on Hermione, why are you suddenly so interested in her love life? You aren't allowed to be a part of it anymore."

"I had a good reason for cheating on her, it doesn't mean I don't care about her anymore."

Harry scoffed quietly, "You're being selfish Ron. This is the classic case of wanting what you can't have. You took her for granted when you guys dated. And now that someone else is showing her the attention you should've shown her, you're jealous because she's not your shiny new toy anymore."

"That's not true," Ron growled, clenching his fists. Harry merely raised his eyebrows at the sudden anger the wizard was showing.

"You gunna fight me mate?" Harry sighed and stepped back, but did not back down. "Are you using that girl as well? That was your plan? Make Hermione think Malfoy was cheating on her so she'd get rid of him and run back to you? That Hufflepuff girl is going to realise you're just using her eventually, and when she does, there will be hell to pay."

"Whose side are you on Harry?"

Harry rolled his eyes as his temper started to rise. "There are no sides Ron, I just want everyone to be happy! And right now, Hermione is happy, and you're trying to wreck that for her! You would be so much happier if you dropped this and tried to mend your friendship with her, rather than push her away to the point where even I have some trouble wanting to be friends with you." Ron went to protest but Harry raised his hand up to stop him. "The way that you've been acting recently has made even Malfoy seem like a decent bloke, and that's saying something Ron. You need to sort yourself out mate before consequences happen."

Ron put his head down, and his body was radiating what must have been shame, "I didn't realise what I'd lost until I lost her Harry. I can't stand it."

"I know mate," he mumbled awkwardly, "but that's life."

"Watching her with Malfoy… it tears me up inside. Something feels _wrong_ Harry, and I don't know what but I don't trust it!"

"She's happy Ron. And right now, that's just going to have to be enough. You need to talk to her," he said softly, as if expecting another explosion from the downtrodden wizard in front of him, "You need to apologise, and you need to stop trying to ruin her life. Drop Hermione. Drop the Hufflepuff, you don't need that drama mate."

Ron nodded, just as Slughorn swung open the potions doors. He took one look at Harry, and the two set off towards the classroom, a silent understanding settling over them.

Hermione sat down beside Draco, a cheerful grin planted permanently upon her face as she placed her potions ingredients neatly around the desk. His face remained expressionless, something which would have worried her had his hand not have been squeezing hers gently under the table away from prying eyes. Draco had been happy to make the public know they were dating, since they basically already assumed after the show in The Great Hall the two had put on a week ago, but Hermione had been quick to learn he was not one for large amounts of public affection.

She measured out the ingredients, freeing her hand from his clutch, but sneaked glances at him out of the corner of her eye. It reminded her of how desperate she'd seemed in sixth year when Ron had a fling with Lavender Brown. She'd hated how weak it had made her feel, but she couldn't shake the emotions. She'd cared so much for the boy that every time he was around her it was as if he was the only person in the room. And it had hurt her to see that he obviously did not feel the same way. The way he'd latched on to Lavender Brown after their win on the quidditch pitch had made her heart compress and her chest feel so heavy she could barely breathe.

Malfoy was different. It was lighter, easier.

With Draco, she could hold a witty and intelligent conversation, she could banter with him and rather than get into fights she'd end up having to recollect herself and find new ways to become wittier and quicker with her responses. He challenged her, he was not just someone she could obsess over and then realise there was nothing to keep her around after the initial beginnings.

Draco Malfoy had a way of not having to look at her at all within an entire class period, and yet still make her feel relevant. She still felt as if she were the only prime focus of his, even if he didn't act like it. With every small movement she'd make, he'd react. If she were to place the wrong ingredient near the potion, his hand would dart out and stop her, if she could not figure out how to get the juice out of a pod, he'd help her extract it. He did not need to focus his entire being on her to realise she was there. Ron had been different. Ron could stare at her and still not realise she was needing help. Ron thought of her as strong Hermione, brave Hermione, but every person had their weak moments.

"Draco," Hermione's head snapped up at the new voice whispering to her left. Blaise Zambini crouched over their desk, his eyes staring intently at the blonde wizard. Draco did not even glance up, he merely nodded to acknowledge the Italian, and continued with his work. "It's important Draco." Blaise hissed quietly, eyes darting towards where Hermione was listening curiously. "We need to talk in private."

"I'm busy Zambini," Draco said, sighing, "In case you hadn't noticed, we are in class right now."

"Don't be a prat Draco."

"But Blaise, it's what I'm best at." The Italian wizard closed his eyes in frustration, and opened them slowly glaring daggers at the sass radiating from the blonde.

"Your mother wrote me a letter." Draco finally had an incentive to take his eyes off his work, his head snapping up towards Blaise in a slight alarm. "And I think it's time you start telling me the bloody truth."


	25. Chapter 25

The bell rang and Draco grabbed Blaise's arm, tearing the two wizards from the classroom quicker than Hermione had time to ask what was happening. Her heart jolted slightly at the wide expression the blonde's eyes had held as the Italian mentioned his mother, and she could not help but wonder what in the hell was going on.

She packed her bag quickly, with every intention of following her boyfriend and his 'best mate,' but a gentle tug on the back of her robes made her pause, turning slowly around to see who was trying to get her attention.

Surprise, surprise.

"Im not in the mood," she sighed quietly, yanking her robes from between the long fingers of her ex boyfriend. "Please leave me alone, I was having a good day."

Ron sighed but let her go, "Hear me out."

"I've heard you out Ron, and every time it ends up with me feeling horrible and you leaving victorious. I thought I'd made it clear I was done arguing with you."

"I'm not trying to argue Hermione," he blurted out, "honestly, I'm trying to apologise."

The witch hesitated in surprise, never actually recalling the ginger boy to have said that to her before. He was not one to say sorry, he'd always been equally as stubborn as she had been, even though he felt guilt as easily as anyone else. She turned to face him, an eyebrow quirked defensively, expecting this to just be another trick. "Did you try to get Draco to cheat on me?" She asked quietly, expecting him to get defensive and lie to her.

"I wanted to see if he actually cared about you." She scoffed at his response. "No, I thought he would kiss her back. And if he did, I'd know it was all bullshit… but she said he didn't."

"Are you happy now Ronald? Did he prove his worth?"

"He'll never be worth as much as you are Hermione. I'm sorry I didn't realise that before. I've been a real prick, but if you'd be kind enough to give me another chance to be your friend again… I promise I won't screw up this time."

She took a step back, her eyes widening at his proposition. "Just friends?" The boy nodded, although he hesitated slightly. "And you won't try to ruin my relationship or get into fights with Draco?" Ron clenched his jaw but nodded again, a short, quick nod as if it were difficult for him to agree to it.

"We could be the Golden Trio again Hermione… Don't you want that?"

Her shoulders drooped at his question, "Of course I do. I want it more than anything."

"I'm willing to try. It won't be easy, and I still hate the good for nothing prat, but I'm willing to stop being a sodding prick to you and get my head out of my arse."

"I don't know Ron. A lot of things have been said that can't be unsaid." She stepped towards him slowly, her eyes finding his blue ones. "It really hurt. I trusted you, I thought you were more than what you showed me you are." His shoulders slumped but she continued. "There was a time where I would've said I loved you… but after everything..you're right. We wouldn't have worked. We are so different, and I think being friends again.. or at least trying to, would be better than fighting over the same things. So okay, if you are willing to try, I guess I will be too."

He held his arms out slightly, and she smiled softly at the boy, a flood of happy emotions crashing over her like a tsunami as she stepped into them. He gave her a gentle squeeze and pulled away, as if testing to see whether he'd over stepped any boundaries, and from over her shoulder he could see The Boy Who Lived giving him a cheerful thumbs up at the encounter.

Ron grabbed his things after telling Hermione to meet them for dinner in The Great Hall, and left her feeling overwhelmed at the sudden twist of events that had happened that afternoon. The encounter with the wizard was almost enough to put the thought of Malfoy's reaction out of her mind, but the sight of his potions book laying scattered beneath his chair brought back the realisation that she had questions which she intended to be answered.

Hermione picked the book up off the ground and set out in search of her boyfriend, her mind whirring with the possible lies that Draco had been feeding to Zabini. She was going to get answers, and she was going to get them now.

The halls were buzzing with students, freshly escaping the stuffy classrooms and on their way to the courtyard to relax in their frees, and Hermione was quick to realise that finding two students within the entire castle would be much like locating a needle within a haystack. Her greatest bet would be the Slytherin common rooms, which she knew from the stories she'd been told back in second year from the boys, was located somewhere within the dungeons, but she'd never actually been there herself. Technically she was entering the snake pit completely blind.

It was times like these that Hermione half wished she attended a muggle school, with a muggle boyfriend, who owned a muggle phone, so that she could easily locate him when she wanted to. It

wasn't that she wanted to seem clingy, in fact that was the polar opposite of what she wanted, but knowing where he was would have been completely fantastic in that point of time.

She wandered through the halls, and past the potions rooms in search of something which would indicate to her to be a common room entrance, but alas she was unsuccessful. Growling to herself at their incredible ability to disappear, Hermione wandered back towards the Great Hall, assuring herself that she would corner him later on and ask what was going on.

**Gosh guys, I'm so sorry, I never intended to make you wait so long, but my best mate and I decided to take a spontaneous trip up the coast of Australia for two weeks, so that's why I haven't uploaded. I have so much spare time now that I'll try to make it be constant again. Thanks for being so patient, you guys are honestly fantastic xx**


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